IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/zbw/zewdip/22009.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Green start-ups and the role of founder personality

Author

Listed:
  • Chapman, Gary
  • Hottenrott, Hanna

Abstract

Green start-ups play a vital role in the needed transition towards more environmentally sustainable economies. Yet our understanding of why some founders start green ventures and others do not remains incomplete. We build on the cognitive and decision-making perspectives on start-ups proenvironmental engagement to shed light on the role of founders' personality traits - focusing on the 'Big 5' and risk tolerance - in explaining whether founders' start new ventures with environmentally friendly products. Our analysis of a large, representative, manufacturing and service sector sample of German start-ups illustrates the important role of founder personality traits. Specifically, openness and extraversion promote environmentally friendly products while neuroticism inhibits it. We discuss the implications of these insights.

Suggested Citation

  • Chapman, Gary & Hottenrott, Hanna, 2022. "Green start-ups and the role of founder personality," ZEW Discussion Papers 22-009, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:zewdip:22009
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/251953/1/1798301725.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Thomas Astebro & Holger Herz & Ramana Nanda & Roberto A. Weber, 2014. "Seeking the Roots of Entrepreneurship: Insights from Behavioral Economics," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 28(3), pages 49-70, Summer.
    2. Helmut Fryges & Sandra Gottschalk & Karsten Kohn, 2010. "The KfW/ZEW Start-up Panel: Design and Research Potential," Schmollers Jahrbuch : Journal of Applied Social Science Studies / Zeitschrift für Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaften, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin, vol. 130(1), pages 117-132.
    3. Paul Lanoie, 2008. "When And Why Does It Pay To Be Green?," CIRANO Papers 2008n-02a, CIRANO.
    4. Chapman, Gary & Lucena, Abel & Afcha, Sergio, 2018. "R&D subsidies & external collaborative breadth: Differential gains and the role of collaboration experience," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(3), pages 623-636.
    5. Cojoianu, Theodor F. & Clark, Gordon L. & Hoepner, Andreas G.F. & Veneri, Paolo & Wójcik, Dariusz, 2020. "Entrepreneurs for a low carbon world: How environmental knowledge and policy shape the creation and financing of green start-ups," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(6).
    6. Sascha Rexhäuser & Christian Rammer, 2014. "Environmental Innovations and Firm Profitability: Unmasking the Porter Hypothesis," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 57(1), pages 145-167, January.
    7. Lex Borghans & Angela Lee Duckworth & James J. Heckman & Bas ter Weel, 2008. "The Economics and Psychology of Personality Traits," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 43(4).
    8. Busic-Sontic, Ante & Czap, Natalia V. & Fuerst, Franz, 2017. "The role of personality traits in green decision-making," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 313-328.
    9. Piovesan, Marco & Willadsen, Helene, 2021. "Risk preferences and personality traits in children and adolescents," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 186(C), pages 523-532.
    10. Andreas Lichter & Max Löffler & Sebastian Siegloch, 2021. "The Long-Term Costs of Government Surveillance: Insights from Stasi Spying in East Germany," Journal of the European Economic Association, European Economic Association, vol. 19(2), pages 741-789.
    11. Arnaldo Camuffo & Alessandro Cordova & Alfonso Gambardella & Chiara Spina, 2020. "A Scientific Approach to Entrepreneurial Decision Making: Evidence from a Randomized Control Trial," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 66(2), pages 564-586, February.
    12. Criscuolo, Chiara & Menon, Carlo, 2015. "Environmental policies and risk finance in the green sector: Cross-country evidence," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 38-56.
    13. Fokko J. Eller & Michael M. Gielnik & Hendrik Wimmer & Corinna Thölke & Sara Holzapfel & Silke Tegtmeier & Jantje Halberstadt, 2020. "Identifying business opportunities for sustainable development: Longitudinal and experimental evidence contributing to the field of sustainable entrepreneurship," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(3), pages 1387-1403, March.
    14. Nikolaev, Boris N. & Maldonado-Bautista, Ileana, 2019. "Personality traits and income attainment of self-employed people—Accounting for model uncertainty," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 11(C), pages 1-1.
    15. Luca Berchicci & Nilanjana Dutt & Will Mitchell, 2019. "Knowledge Sources and Operational Problems: Less Now, More Later," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 30(5), pages 1030-1053, September.
    16. Hottenrott, Hanna & Rexhäuser, Sascha & Veugelers, Reinhilde, 2016. "Organisational change and the productivity effects of green technology adoption," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 172-194.
    17. Holger Patzelt & Dean A. Shepherd, 2011. "Recognizing Opportunities for Sustainable Development," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 35(4), pages 631-652, July.
    18. Hall, Jeremy K. & Daneke, Gregory A. & Lenox, Michael J., 2010. "Sustainable development and entrepreneurship: Past contributions and future directions," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 25(5), pages 439-448, September.
    19. Pelin Demirel & Qian Cher Li & Francesco Rentocchini & J. Pawan Tamvada, 2019. "Born to be green: new insights into the economics and management of green entrepreneurship," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 52(4), pages 759-771, April.
    20. Ben Arfi, Wissal & Hikkerova, Lubica & Sahut, Jean-Michel, 2018. "External knowledge sources, green innovation and performance," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 210-220.
    21. Chapman, Gary & Hewitt-Dundas, Nola, 2018. "The effect of public support on senior manager attitudes to innovation," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 28-39.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Feilian Xia & James Thewissen & Winifred Huang & Shuo Yan, 2024. "Founder-CEO Extraversion and Sustainability Orientation in Initial Coin Offerings," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 48(4), pages 941-980, July.
    2. Füner, Lena & Berger, Marius & Bersch, Johannes & Hottenrott, Hanna, 2023. "Local networks and new business formation," ZEW Discussion Papers 23-067, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    3. Chapman, Gary & Hottenrott, Hanna, 2023. "Founder personality and start-up subsidies," ZEW Discussion Papers 23-008, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    4. Pandey, Dharen Kumar & Hunjra, Ahmed Imran & Hassan, M. Kabir & Rai, Varun Kumar, 2023. "Venture capital financing during crises: A bibliometric review," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    5. Binbin Cai & Yin Chen & Arslan Ayub, 2023. "“Quiet the Mind, and the Soul Will Speak”! Exploring the Boundary Effects of Green Mindfulness and Spiritual Intelligence on University Students’ Green Entrepreneurial Intention–Behavior Link," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-21, February.
    6. Elisa Rodepeter & Christoph Gschnaidtner & Hanna Hottenrott, 2024. "Big Data and Start-up Performance," Working Papers 232, Bavarian Graduate Program in Economics (BGPE).
    7. Rodepeter, Elisa & Gschnaidtner, Christoph & Hottenrott, Hanna, 2024. "Big Data and Start-up Performance," VfS Annual Conference 2024 (Berlin): Upcoming Labor Market Challenges 302358, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    8. Bammens, Yannick & Hünermund, Paul, 2023. "Ecological community logics, identifiable business ownership, and green innovation as a company response," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(8).

    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. María Huertas González-Serrano & Vicente Añó Sanz & Rómulo Jacobo González-García, 2020. "Sustainable Sport Entrepreneurship and Innovation: A Bibliometric Analysis of This Emerging Field of Research," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-26, June.
    2. Menuka Jayaratne & Gillian Sullivan Mort & Clare D’Souza, 2019. "Sustainability Entrepreneurship: From Consumer Concern Towards Entrepreneurial Commitment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(24), pages 1-13, December.
    3. Ioana-Simona Ivasciuc & Ana Ispas, 2023. "Exploring the Motivations, Abilities and Opportunities of Young Entrepreneurs to Engage in Sustainable Tourism Business in the Mountain Area," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-28, January.
    4. Ali Saleh Alshebami & Abdullah Hamoud Ali Seraj & Ibrahim A. Elshaer & Abdullah Sultan Al Shammre & Salem Handhal Al Marri & Abdalwali Lutfi & Mostafa Aboulnour Salem & Ashraf Mahrous Nour Zaher, 2023. "Improving Social Performance through Innovative Small Green Businesses: Knowledge Sharing and Green Entrepreneurial Intention as Antecedents," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-18, May.
    5. Di Tian & Xiaohan Guo & Peng Wang, 2021. "Innovation Vouchers and the Sustainable Growth of High-Tech SMEs: Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(20), pages 1-17, October.
    6. Jinhuan Tian & Yan Dong & Gianluca Vagnani & Peizhong Liu, 2023. "Green innovation and the stock market value of heavily polluting firms: The role of environmental compliance costs and technological collaboration," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(7), pages 4938-4953, November.
    7. Christine Volkmann & Klaus Fichter & Magnus Klofsten & David B. Audretsch, 2021. "Sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems: an emerging field of research," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 56(3), pages 1047-1055, February.
    8. Mengli Zhao & Jinxin Liu & Chengli Shu, 2021. "Pursuing sustainable development through green entrepreneurship: An institutional perspective," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(8), pages 4281-4296, December.
    9. Thorsten Bergmann & Hannes Utikal, 2021. "How to Support Start-Ups in Developing a Sustainable Business Model: The Case of an European Social Impact Accelerator," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-29, March.
    10. Pilar Bernal & Beatriz Domínguez & Javier Montero, 2022. "When are entrepreneurs more environmentally oriented? An analysis of stakeholders' pressures at different stages of evolution of the venture," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(3), pages 828-844, March.
    11. Alderotti, Giammarco & Rapallini, Chiara & Traverso, Silvio, 2023. "The Big Five personality traits and earnings: A meta-analysis," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    12. Jim Andersén, 2023. "Green resource orchestration: A critical appraisal of the use of resource orchestration in environmental management research, and a research agenda for future study," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(8), pages 5506-5520, December.
    13. Presley K. Wesseh & Boqiang Lin & Yixuan Zhang & Preslyn Sharon Wesseh, 2024. "Sustainable entrepreneurship: When does environmental compliance improve corporate performance?," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(4), pages 3203-3221, May.
    14. Gambardella, Alfonso & Camuffo, Arnaldo & Spina, Chiara, 2020. "Small Changes with Big Impact: Experimental Evidence of a Scientific Approach to the Decision-Making of Entrepreneurial Firms," CEPR Discussion Papers 14909, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    15. Mendez-Picazo, María-Teresa & Galindo-Martin, Miguel-Angel & Perez-Pujol, Rafael-Sergio, 2024. "Direct and indirect effects of digital transformation on sustainable development in pre- and post-pandemic periods," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    16. Iftikhar Hussain & Mehrab Nazir & Saadia Bano Hashmi & Assunta Di Vaio & Imrab Shaheen & Muhammad Arfaq Waseem & Adeel Arshad, 2021. "Green and Sustainable Entrepreneurial Intentions: A Mediation-Moderation Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-13, August.
    17. Régis Y. Chenavaz & Alexandra Couston & Stéphanie Heichelbech & Isabelle Pignatel & Stanko Dimitrov, 2023. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Entrepreneurial Ventures: A Conceptual Framework and Research Agenda," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(11), pages 1-30, May.
    18. Antonioli, Davide & Ghisetti, Claudia & Mazzanti, Massimiliano & Nicolli, Francesco, 2022. "The economic returns of circular economy practices," FEEM Working Papers 319761, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM).
    19. Theodor F. Cojoianu & Andreas G. F. Hoepner & Xi Hu & Moustafa Ramadan & Paolo Veneri & Dariusz Wójcik, 2024. "Are cities venturing green? A global analysis of the impact of green entrepreneurship on city air pollution," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 62(2), pages 523-540, February.
    20. Croce, Annalisa & Toschi, Laura & Ughetto, Elisa & Zanni, Sara, 2024. "Cleantech and policy framework in Europe: A machine learning approach," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 186(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    emission reduction; environmentally friendly products; green innovation; Big Fivepersonality traits; sustainability;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G24 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Investment Banking; Venture Capital; Brokerage
    • L26 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Entrepreneurship
    • O25 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Development Planning and Policy - - - Industrial Policy
    • O31 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    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:zbw:zewdip:22009. 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: ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/zemande.html .

    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.