Social networks as mediator in entrepreneurial optimism and new venture performance

2017 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
pp. 551-562 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ying Chen ◽  
Xiaohu Zhou ◽  
Guojun Yang ◽  
Jiani Bao ◽  
Guan Wang

Although findings reported in an increasing number of studies shed light on the relationship between optimism and entrepreneurial outcomes, little is known of the mechanisms by which entrepreneurial optimism influences new venture performance. Researchers have found that people who are highly optimistic build more extensive social networks than others do, which can influence the outcome of their efforts. In order to explore the relationships among entrepreneurial optimism, social networks, and new venture performance, we analyzed data obtained from 142 Chinese entrepreneurs. Results indicated that entrepreneurial optimism had a significant impact on social network size, social network heterogeneity, and new venture performance. Social network size fully mediated the relationship between entrepreneurial optimism and new venture performance, but social network heterogeneity did not have a mediating role. These findings support the application of a social network perspective to gain a better understanding of the mechanism by which entrepreneurial optimism influences new venture performance.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiyin Cao ◽  
Edward Bishop Smith

Previous research has demonstrated that the size and reach of people’s social networks tend to be positively related to their social status. Although several explanations help to account for this relationship—for example, higher-status people may be part of multiple social circles and therefore have more social contacts with whom to affiliate—we present a novel argument involving people’s beliefs about the relationship between status and quality, what we call status-quality coupling. Across seven separate studies, we demonstrate that the positive association between social status and network-broadening behavior (as well as social network size) is contingent on the extent to which people believe that status is a reliable indicator of quality. Across each of our studies, high- and low-status people who viewed status and quality as tightly coupled differed in their network-broadening behaviors, as well as in the size of their reported social networks. The effect was largely driven by the perceived self-value and perceived receptivity of the networking target. Such differences were significantly weaker or nonexistent among equivalently high- and low-status people who viewed status as an unreliable indicator of quality. Because the majority of participants—both high- and low-status—exhibited beliefs in status-quality coupling, we conclude that such a belief marks an important and previously unaccounted-for driver of the relationship between status, network-broadening behaviors, and social networks. Implications for research on social capital, advice seeking, and inequality are highlighted in the discussion section.


Autism ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (5) ◽  
pp. 1138-1151
Author(s):  
Jiedi Lei ◽  
Chris Ashwin ◽  
Mark Brosnan ◽  
Ailsa Russell

Transitioning to university can be anxiety-provoking for all students. The relationship between social anxiety, autistic traits and students’ social network structure, and perceived support is poorly understood. This study used a group-matched design where autistic students ( n = 28) and typically developing students ( n = 28) were matched on sex, age (17–19 years), ethnicity, pre-university academic performance and degree subject at university. Autistic students reported greater transition to university worries, and a smaller social network size compared to typically developing students, though perceived similar levels of support from their social networks. Autistic and typically developing students showed differential patterns of association with both autistic traits and social anxiety. Broader clinical and practical implications of findings are discussed.


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 3380 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miaomiao Yin ◽  
Asghar Jahanshahi

Entrepreneurs’ social networks play a crucial role in developing knowledge-based resources for their new ventures. Although most studies in an entrepreneurship context find that trust is very important when entrepreneurs develop social networks, limited research examines how trust can explain the variation in the relationship between an entrepreneur’s social networks and a firm’s knowledge-based resources. Therefore, the major objective of the paper is to understand the effects of the size of an entrepreneur’s social network on his or her firm’s knowledge-based resources with high and low levels of trust. Our data were collected from surveys administered to 476 entrepreneurs in China in 2018. Our multiple regression analysis indicates that social networks reinforce knowledge-based resources in a situation where entrepreneurs highly trust their major networks partners in their business environment (e.g., family, close friends, consultants, suppliers, peers, etc.). However, with a low level of trust, the relationship between social network and knowledge-based resources is curvilinear (inverse U-shaped). Our empirical validations showed that the relationship between social network and a firm’s knowledge-based resources is highly contingent to the level of trust among network members.


Author(s):  
Muhammad Anwar ◽  
Thomas Clauss ◽  
Wunnam Basit Issah

AbstractHow entrepreneurial orientation facilitates the identification of new opportunities in newly established ventures in emerging economies remains largely unexplored. Approaching entrepreneurial orientation as a second order latent construct, we examined the mediating role of opportunity recognition on new venture performance. Using a survey data from 316 SMEs, the results of the analysis in SmartPLS highlights that entrepreneurial orientation indirectly contributes to the performance of new ventures, where the relationship is partially mediated by opportunity recognition. The findings show that firms with high entrepreneurial orientation can identify and exploit new opportunities as well as enjoy superior performance.


2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
pp. 727-747
Author(s):  
Wenqing Wu ◽  
Hongxin Wang ◽  
Fu-Sheng Tsai

PurposeThis study analyses the relationship between the networks of business incubators (BIs) and new venture performance. It proposes an integrated model for identifying the influence of BIs' internal and external networks on new venture performance through the entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and environmental dynamism.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses multiple regression analysis on a sample of 205 new ventures in Chinese BIs.FindingsBoth the internal and external networks of BIs positively affect new venture performance and EO has a mediating effect in this relationship. Environmental dynamism plays a positive moderating role in the relationship between BIs' internal and external networks and EO.Practical implicationsBased on the results of this study, incubator managers should focus on creating internal and external networks and leveraging network embeddedness to influence new venture performance. Further, new ventures should focus on strengthening their EO and fully consider the impact of environmental dynamism on EO implementation.Originality/valueTo address the research gaps in understanding how BI networks can support new venture growth, this study integrates BIs' internal and external networks and explores their impacts on new venture performance using co-production theory and the resource-based view. It thus opens the black box on how BI's networks affect performance from the EO perspective. Moreover, this study fully clarifies chain relationships by identifying and analysing the moderating role of environmental dynamism.


2020 ◽  
pp. 101269022094086
Author(s):  
Adam Gemar

The relationship between social capital and sport has been an increasing focus of scholarly literature in recent decades. However, very few of these studies consider social capital alongside theories of cultural consumption. Even fewer seek to assess the place of social capital in sports spectatorship. Taking primarily a Bourdieusian and neo-Bourdieusian theoretical approach, this study seeks to rectify these gaps by analysing three key components of social capital – social network size, social network prestige and social network variety – and how they relate to patterns of sports spectatorship and participation. Results indicate that the type of social capital that is most predictive seems to rely heavily upon the nature of the cleavages between cultural patterns of sports engagement. While the size of social network seems most universally applicable to predict sports engagement generally, network variety also seems to be highly applicable to the most omnivorous engagement profiles. Finally, network prestige appears applicable to some highbrow profiles of sports engagement.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S174-S174
Author(s):  
Xin Yao Lin ◽  
Margie E Lachman

Abstract Social relationships are beneficial for psychological wellbeing, but they are also associated with interpersonal stress. With the growing usage of multiple forms of electronic communications (EC) including phone calls, text messages, video chat, and internet among adults of all ages, it was of interest to explore the relationship between social network size (SNS), in-person communication (PC), and EC, and whether the relationship between SNS and frequency of communication is associated with interpersonal stress. A daily diary study was conducted over seven days for 142 participants ages 22 to 94. SNS was assessed with the social convoy model. Frequency of PC and EC, along with interpersonal stress, were assessed daily. As expected, multiple regression analysis results showed that older adults had smaller SNS and less frequent technology communication (text messages, video chat, internet) compared to younger adults. With regard to effects on interpersonal stress, there were no main effects for frequency of PC, EC, or SNS. However, the frequency of EC moderated the relationship between SNS and interpersonal stress, controlling for amount of PC. Among those with a smaller SNS, having more frequent EC was associated with less interpersonal stress compared to those with less frequent EC. For those with a larger SNS, having more frequent EC was associated with more interpersonal stress compared to those with less EC, but PC was not related to interpersonal stress. The discussion will consider implications of the findings for developing interventions to minimize stress from interpersonal communications, especially those that involve EC.


Kybernetes ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (5) ◽  
pp. 1407-1428 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lihui Xia ◽  
Biao Luo ◽  
Ying Sun

Purpose This paper aims to explore the mediating role of organizational entrepreneurial capability in the link between entrepreneurs’ effectuation and new venture performance, and whether entrepreneurs’ passion positively moderates this relationship in the Chinese emerging economy. Design/methodology/approach This study collected survey data from 140 Chinese new ventures. Following an empirical design, hierarchical regression analysis and bootstrapping analysis were applied to examine six hypotheses. Findings Results reveal that organizational entrepreneurial capability plays a positively mediating role in the association between entrepreneurs’ effectuation and new venture performance. Moreover, the whole mediation model is positively moderated by entrepreneurs’ passion, not only the association but also between entrepreneurs’ effectuation and organizational entrepreneurial capability. Research limitations/implications The study is limited to the static relationships between key variables using the data obtained at one point in an emerging economy, which cannot investigate the dynamic evolution between variables. More longitudinal designs or cases to track the dynamic association should be considered. Practical implications The findings provide useful suggestions for entrepreneurs to enhance their effectual logic and entrepreneurs’ passion to better perceive and exploit opportunities and further improve new venture performance. The results also provide guidance for other groups, such as angel investors and policymakers, regarding how to use effectuation logic as an evaluation criterion to judge whether a new venture or program has investment potential. Originality/value These findings enrich the effectuation theory by providing the empirical evidence of the effect of entrepreneurs’ effectuation on new venture performance in an emerging economy. They also provide deeper insights into opportunity research by uncovering the mediating role of organizational entrepreneurial capability in the relationship between entrepreneurs’ effectuation and new venture performance.


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