IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/entthe/v31y2007i1p77-102.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Collective Cognition: When Entrepreneurial Teams, Not Individuals, Make Decisions

Author

Listed:
  • G. Page West III

Abstract

New venture success often depends on how the founding team collectively understands its world, estimates effects of possible actions, makes decisions, and allocates appropriate resources. Drawing on recent work in managerial cognition and entrepreneurship, this article argues for the importance of examining cognition at the team level. New venture strategy is used as a springboard to discuss collective cognition, although other important critical decision domains in new ventures may also be used to illustrate the arguments. In this and other such decision domains, collective cognition mediates between individual cognitions and firm actions and performance. A method for assessing entrepreneurial top management team cognition is developed and then tested in an exploratory study of technology–based new ventures. Two structural characteristics of collective cognition (differentiation and integration) are strongly related to firm performance, suggesting interesting opportunities for future entrepreneurship research in cognition.

Suggested Citation

  • G. Page West III, 2007. "Collective Cognition: When Entrepreneurial Teams, Not Individuals, Make Decisions," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 31(1), pages 77-102, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:entthe:v:31:y:2007:i:1:p:77-102
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-6520.2007.00164.x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2007.00164.x
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2007.00164.x?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. L. J. Bourgeois, 1980. "Performance and consensus," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 1(3), pages 227-248, July.
    2. Roger J., Ronald H. Volkema Gorman, 1998. "The Influence of Cognitive‐based Group Composition on Decision‐making Process and Outcome," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 35(1), pages 105-121, January.
    3. Sandberg, William R. & Hofer, Charles W., 1987. "Improving new venture performance: The role of strategy, industry structure, and the entrepreneur," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 2(1), pages 5-28.
    4. Willard, Gary E. & Krueger, David A. & Feeser, Henry R., 1992. "In order to grow, must the founder go: A comparison of performance between founder and non-founder managed high-growth manufacturing firms," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 7(3), pages 181-194, May.
    5. Robert E. Quinn & Kim Cameron, 1983. "Organizational Life Cycles and Shifting Criteria of Effectiveness: Some Preliminary Evidence," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 29(1), pages 33-51, January.
    6. Ari Ginsberg, 1988. "Measuring and modelling changes in strategy: Theoretical foundations and empirical directions," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 9(6), pages 559-575, November.
    7. Colombo, Massimo G. & Grilli, Luca, 2005. "Founders' human capital and the growth of new technology-based firms: A competence-based view," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 34(6), pages 795-816, August.
    8. Colin Eden & Sue Jones & David Sims & Tim Smithin, 1981. "The Intersubjectivity Of Issues And Issues Of Intersubjectivity," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 18(1), pages 37-47, January.
    9. Michel G. Bougon, 1992. "Congregate Cognitive Maps: A Unified Dynamic Theory Of Organization And Strategy," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(3), pages 369-387, May.
    10. Ari Ginsberg, 1989. "Construing The Business Portfolio: A Cognitive Model Of Diversification[1]," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(4), pages 417-438, July.
    11. Gregory G. Dess & Richard B. Robinson, 1984. "Measuring organizational performance in the absence of objective measures: The case of the privately‐held firm and conglomerate business unit," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 5(3), pages 265-273, July.
    12. Gaglio, Connie Marie & Katz, Jerome A, 2001. "The Psychological Basis of Opportunity Identification: Entrepreneurial Alertness," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 16(2), pages 95-111, March.
    13. Rhonda K. Reger & Anne Sigismund Huff, 1993. "Strategic groups: A cognitive perspective," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 14(2), pages 103-123, February.
    14. R. Duane Ireland & Michael A. Hitt & Richard A. Bettis & Deborah Auld De Porras, 1987. "Strategy formulation processes: Differences in perceptions of strength and weaknesses indicators and environmental uncertainty by managerial level," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 8(5), pages 469-485, September.
    15. Zacharakis, Andrew L. & Meyer, G. Dale, 1998. "A lack of insight: do venture capitalists really understand their own decision process?," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 13(1), pages 57-76, January.
    16. Mohammed, Susan & Ringseis, Erika, 2001. "Cognitive Diversity and Consensus in Group Decision Making: The Role of Inputs, Processes, and Outcomes," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 85(2), pages 310-335, July.
    17. WestIII, G. Page & Meyer, G. Dale, 1998. "To agree or not to agree? consensus and performance in new ventures," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 13(5), pages 395-422, September.
    18. David K. Hurst & James C. Rush & Roderick E. White, 1989. "Top management teams and organizational renewal," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 10(S1), pages 87-105, June.
    19. Ensley, Michael D. & Pearson, Allison W. & Amason, Allen C., 2002. "Understanding the dynamics of new venture top management teams: cohesion, conflict, and new venture performance," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 17(4), pages 365-386, July.
    20. Gatewood, Elizabeth J. & Shaver, Kelly G. & Gartner, William B., 1995. "A longitudinal study of cognitive factors influencing start-up behaviors and success at venture creation," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 10(5), pages 371-391, September.
    21. Colin Eden, 1992. "On The Nature Of Cognitive Maps," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(3), pages 261-265, May.
    22. Busenitz, Lowell W. & Barney, Jay B., 1997. "Differences between entrepreneurs and managers in large organizations: Biases and heuristics in strategic decision-making," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 12(1), pages 9-30, January.
    23. Scott Shane, 2000. "Prior Knowledge and the Discovery of Entrepreneurial Opportunities," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 11(4), pages 448-469, August.
    24. Thomas J. Dean & G. Dale Meyer & Julio DeCastro, 1993. "Determinants of New-Firm Formations in Manufacturing Industries: Industry Dynamics, Entry Barriers, and Organizational Inertia," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 17(2), pages 49-60, January.
    25. Mark Simon & Susan M. Houghton, 2002. "The Relationship among Biases, Misperceptions, and the Introduction of Pioneering Products: Examining Differences in Venture Decision Contexts," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 27(2), pages 105-124, April.
    26. Baron, Robert A., 1998. "Cognitive mechanisms in entrepreneurship: why and when enterpreneurs think differently than other people," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 13(4), pages 275-294, July.
    27. Deniz Ucbasaran & Andy Lockett & Mike Wright & Paul Westhead, 2003. "Entrepreneurial Founder Teams: Factors Associated with Member Entry and Exit," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 28(2), pages 107-128, March.
    28. Grandi, Alessandro & Grimaldi, Rosa, 2003. "Exploring the Networking Characteristics of New Venture Founding Teams," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 21(4), pages 329-341, December.
    29. Per Davidsson & Johan Wiklund, 2001. "Levels of Analysis in Entrepreneurship Research: Current Research Practice and Suggestions for the Future," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 25(4), pages 81-100, July.
    30. Jeffrey G. Covin & Dennis P. Slevin, 1991. "A Conceptual Model of Entrepreneurship as Firm Behavior," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 16(1), pages 7-26, October.
    31. Linda A. Cyr & Diane E. Johnson & Theresa M. Welbourne, 2000. "Human Resources in Initial Public Offering Firms: Do Venture Capitalists Make a Difference?," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 25(1), pages 77-92, October.
    32. Connie Marie Gaglio, 2004. "The Role of Mental Simulations and Counterfactual Thinking in the Opportunity Identification Process," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 28(6), pages 533-552, November.
    33. Cliff Bowman & Véronique Ambrosini, 1997. "Perceptions of Strategic Priorities, Consensus and Firm Performance," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 34(2), pages 241-258, March.
    34. McDougall, Patricia P. & Robinson, Richard Jr. & DeNisi, Angelo S., 1992. "Modeling new venture performance: An analysis of new venture strategy, industry structure, and venture origin," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 7(4), pages 267-289, July.
    35. Patricia McDougall & Richard B. Robinson, 1990. "New venture strategies: An empirical identification of eight ‘archetypes’ of competitive strategies for entry," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 11(6), pages 447-467, October.
    36. William B. Gartner & Kelly G. Shaver & Elizabeth Gatewood & Jerome A. Katz, 1994. "Finding the Entrepreneur in Entrepreneurship," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 18(3), pages 5-9, April.
    37. Henry R. Feeser & Gary E. Willard, 1990. "Founding strategy and performance: A comparison of high and low growth high tech firms," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 11(2), pages 87-98, February.
    38. Pierre Cossette & Michel Audet, 1992. "Mapping Of An Idiosyncratic Schema," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(3), pages 325-347, May.
    39. Clarysse, Bart & Moray, Nathalie, 2004. "A process study of entrepreneurial team formation: the case of a research-based spin-off," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 19(1), pages 55-79, January.
    40. C. K. Prahalad & Richard A. Bettis, 1986. "The dominant logic: A new linkage between diversity and performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 7(6), pages 485-501, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Erik Lundmark & Anna Krzeminska & Dean A. Shepherd, 2019. "Images of Entrepreneurship: Exploring Root Metaphors and Expanding Upon Them," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 43(1), pages 138-170, January.
    2. Dimo Dimov, 2007. "Beyond the Single-Person, Single-Insight Attribution in Understanding Entrepreneurial Opportunities," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 31(5), pages 713-731, September.
    3. Jeffery S. McMullen & Katrina M. Brownell & Joel Adams, 2021. "What Makes an Entrepreneurship Study Entrepreneurial? Toward A Unified Theory of Entrepreneurial Agency," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 45(5), pages 1197-1238, September.
    4. Pérez-Centeno, Victor, 2018. "Brain-driven entrepreneurship research: Expanded review and research agenda towards entrepreneurial enhancement," Working Papers 02/18, Institut für Mittelstandsforschung (IfM) Bonn.
    5. Denis A. Grégoire & Martin X. Noël & Richard Déry & Jean–Pierre Béchard, 2006. "Is There Conceptual Convergence in Entrepreneurship Research? A Co–Citation Analysis of Frontiers of Entrepreneurship Research, 1981–2004," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 30(3), pages 333-373, May.
    6. DeTienne, Dawn R. & Shepherd, Dean A. & De Castro, Julio O., 2008. "The fallacy of "only the strong survive": The effects of extrinsic motivation on the persistence decisions for under-performing firms," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 23(5), pages 528-546, September.
    7. G. Page West III & G. Dale Meyer, 1998. "Temporal Dimensions of Opportunistic Change in Technology-Based Ventures," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 22(2), pages 31-52, January.
    8. Zabara, Tatiana, 2019. "Evolution of entrepreneurial teams in technology-based new ventures," Other publications TiSEM cc09d065-3811-47b6-9c93-8, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    9. Tim R. Holcomb & R. Duane Ireland & R. Michael Holmes Jr. & Michael A. Hitt, 2009. "Architecture of Entrepreneurial Learning: Exploring the Link among Heuristics, Knowledge, and Action," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 33(1), pages 167-192, January.
    10. Robert A. Baron & Thomas B. Ward, 2004. "Expanding Entrepreneurial Cognition's Toolbox: Potential Contributions from the Field of Cognitive Science," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 28(6), pages 553-573, November.
    11. Dean A. Shepherd & Dawn R. DeTienne, 2005. "Prior Knowledge, Potential Financial Reward, and Opportunity Identification," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 29(1), pages 91-112, January.
    12. Serge Lenga, 2013. "Un effet modérateur des processus cognitifs de l'entrepreneur sur les opportunités d'affaires situées dans l'espace géographique," Working Papers hal-00832027, HAL.
    13. Daniel P. Forbes, 2005. "The Effects of Strategic Decision Making on Entrepreneurial Self–Efficacy," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 29(5), pages 599-626, September.
    14. Nigam, Nirjhar & Benetti, Cristiane & Johan, Sofia A., 2020. "Digital start-up access to venture capital financing: What signals quality?," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 45(C).
    15. Malin Malmström & Jeaneth Johansson & Joakim Wincent, 2015. "Cognitive Constructions of Low–Profit and High–Profit Business Models: A Repertory Grid Study of Serial Entrepreneurs," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 39(5), pages 1083-1109, September.
    16. Tumasjan, Andranik & Braun, Reiner, 2012. "In the eye of the beholder: How regulatory focus and self-efficacy interact in influencing opportunity recognition," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 27(6), pages 622-636.
    17. Frederiks, Arjan J. & Englis, Basil G. & Ehrenhard, Michel L. & Groen, Aard J., 2019. "Entrepreneurial cognition and the quality of new venture ideas: An experimental approach to comparing future-oriented cognitive processes," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 34(2), pages 327-347.
    18. James C. Hayton & Magdalena Cholakova, 2012. "The Role of Affect in the Creation and Intentional Pursuit of Entrepreneurial Ideas," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 36(1), pages 41-67, January.
    19. Ekaterina Bjørnåli & Arild Aspelund, 2012. "The role of the entrepreneurial team and the board of directors in the internationalization of academic spin-offs," Journal of International Entrepreneurship, Springer, vol. 10(4), pages 350-377, December.
    20. JoAnne Yong–Kwan Lim & Lowell W. Busenitz & Laku Chidambaram, 2013. "New Venture Teams and the Quality of Business Opportunities Identified: Faultlines between Subgroups of Founders and Investors," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 37(1), pages 47-67, January.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:entthe:v:31:y:2007:i:1:p:77-102. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.