Entrepreneurial alertness and social entrepreneurial venture creation: the mediating role of personal initiative

Purpose - The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between entrepreneurial alertness, personal initiative and social entrepreneurial venture creation and to examine the mediating role of personal initiative in the relationship between entrepreneurial alertness and social entrepreneurial venture creation among social ventures in Uganda. Design/methodology/approach - The study adopts a quantitative approach where hypotheses were statistically tested using structural equation modeling based on survey data (n= 243) from community-based organization owner-managers in Uganda. Findings - Results show that both entrepreneurial alertness and social personal initiative are positively and significantly associated with social entrepreneurial venture creation. Results further indicate that personal initiative partially mediates the relationship between entrepreneurial alertness and social entrepreneurial venture creation. Originality/value - To the authors’ knowledge, this study provides a shred of initial empirical evidence on the relationship between entrepreneurial alertness, entrepreneurial personal initiative and social entrepreneurial venture creation using evidence from Uganda, a developing country. Mostly, this study provides initial evidence of the mediating role of personal initiative in the relationship between entrepreneurial alertness and social entrepreneurial venture creation in an under-researched developing country – Uganda.