IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jbvent/v33y2018i6p780-812.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Narcissistic rhetoric and crowdfunding performance: A social role theory perspective

Author

Listed:
  • Anglin, Aaron H.
  • Wolfe, Marcus T.
  • Short, Jeremy C.
  • McKenny, Aaron F.
  • Pidduck, Robert J.

Abstract

Drawing from clinical and organizational narcissism research, we develop a novel measure of narcissistic rhetoric, investigating its prevalence in a sample of 1863 crowdfunding campaigns. An experiment using 1800 observations further validates our measure and confirms our hypothesized inverted-U relationship between narcissistic rhetoric and crowdfunding performance. Leveraging social role theory, we explore sex, sexual orientation, and race as potential moderators of this relationship. Moderation tests reveal LGBTQ entrepreneurs generally yield greater performance when using narcissistic rhetoric than heterosexuals while racial minorities underperform Caucasians using narcissistic rhetoric. Our findings suggest successful crowdfunding campaigns must balance narcissistic rhetoric with entrepreneurs' perceived social roles.

Suggested Citation

  • Anglin, Aaron H. & Wolfe, Marcus T. & Short, Jeremy C. & McKenny, Aaron F. & Pidduck, Robert J., 2018. "Narcissistic rhetoric and crowdfunding performance: A social role theory perspective," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 33(6), pages 780-812.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jbvent:v:33:y:2018:i:6:p:780-812
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusvent.2018.04.004
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0883902617305475
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2018.04.004?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
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kirsti Iivonen & Johanna Moisander, 2015. "Rhetorical Construction of Narcissistic CSR Orientation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 131(3), pages 649-664, October.
    2. Allison, Thomas H. & Davis, Blakley C. & Webb, Justin W. & Short, Jeremy C., 2017. "Persuasion in crowdfunding: An elaboration likelihood model of crowdfunding performance," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 32(6), pages 707-725.
    3. Johnson, Stefanie K. & Murphy, Susan Elaine & Zewdie, Selamawit & Reichard, Rebecca J., 2008. "The strong, sensitive type: Effects of gender stereotypes and leadership prototypes on the evaluation of male and female leaders," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 106(1), pages 39-60, May.
    4. Verheul, Ingrid & Uhlaner, Lorraine & Thurik, Roy, 2005. "Business accomplishments, gender and entrepreneurial self-image," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 20(4), pages 483-518, July.
    5. Parhankangas, Annaleena & Ehrlich, Michael, 2014. "How entrepreneurs seduce business angels: An impression management approach," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 543-564.
    6. Parhankangas, Annaleena & Renko, Maija, 2017. "Linguistic style and crowdfunding success among social and commercial entrepreneurs," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 32(2), pages 215-236.
    7. Mollick, Ethan, 2014. "The dynamics of crowdfunding: An exploratory study," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 1-16.
    8. Thomas H. Allison & Blakley C. Davis & Jeremy C. Short & Justin W. Webb, 2015. "Crowdfunding in a Prosocial Microlending Environment: Examining the Role of Intrinsic versus Extrinsic Cues," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 39(1), pages 53-73, January.
    9. McCullagh, Peter, 1984. "Generalized linear models," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 16(3), pages 285-292, June.
    10. Bi, Sheng & Liu, Zhiying & Usman, Khalid, 2017. "The influence of online information on investing decisions of reward-based crowdfunding," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 71(C), pages 10-18.
    11. Danny Miller, 2015. "A Downside to the Entrepreneurial Personality?," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 39(1), pages 1-8, January.
    12. Hayward, Mathew L.A. & Forster, William R. & Sarasvathy, Saras D. & Fredrickson, Barbara L., 2010. "Beyond hubris: How highly confident entrepreneurs rebound to venture again," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 25(6), pages 569-578, November.
    13. Glenn Hoetker, 2007. "The use of logit and probit models in strategic management research: Critical issues," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(4), pages 331-343, April.
    14. Valentino, Nicholas A. & Hutchings, Vincent L. & White, Ismail K., 2002. "Cues that Matter: How Political Ads Prime Racial Attitudes During Campaigns," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 96(1), pages 75-90, March.
    15. Segrest Purkiss, Sharon L. & Perrewe, Pamela L. & Gillespie, Treena L. & Mayes, Bronston T. & Ferris, Gerald R., 2006. "Implicit sources of bias in employment interview judgments and decisions," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 101(2), pages 152-167, November.
    16. William J. Wales & Pankaj C. Patel & G. T. Lumpkin, 2013. "In Pursuit of Greatness: CEO Narcissism, Entrepreneurial Orientation, and Firm Performance Variance," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(6), pages 1041-1069, September.
    17. Oleg V. Petrenko & Federico Aime & Jason Ridge & Aaron Hill, 2016. "Corporate social responsibility or CEO narcissism? CSR motivations and organizational performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(2), pages 262-279, February.
    18. Davis, Blakley C. & Hmieleski, Keith M. & Webb, Justin W. & Coombs, Joseph E., 2017. "Funders' positive affective reactions to entrepreneurs' crowdfunding pitches: The influence of perceived product creativity and entrepreneurial passion," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 32(1), pages 90-106.
    19. Jennifer Rowley, 2012. "Conducting research interviews," Management Research Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 35(3/4), pages 260-271, March.
    20. Pankaj C. Patel & Danielle Cooper, 2014. "The harder they fall, the faster they rise: Approach and avoidance focus in narcissistic CEOs," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 35(10), pages 1528-1540, October.
    21. Vishal K. Gupta & Daniel B. Turban & S. Arzu Wasti & Arijit Sikdar, 2009. "The Role of Gender Stereotypes in Perceptions of Entrepreneurs and Intentions to Become an Entrepreneur," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 33(2), pages 397-417, March.
    22. Uy, Marilyn A. & Foo, Maw-Der & Ilies, Remus, 2015. "Perceived progress variability and entrepreneurial effort intensity: The moderating role of venture goal commitment," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 375-389.
    23. Gupta, Vishal K. & Goktan, A. Banu & Gunay, Gonca, 2014. "Gender differences in evaluation of new business opportunity: A stereotype threat perspective," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 29(2), pages 273-288.
    24. Allison, Thomas H. & McKenny, Aaron F. & Short, Jeremy C., 2013. "The effect of entrepreneurial rhetoric on microlending investment: An examination of the warm-glow effect," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 28(6), pages 690-707.
    25. Goran Calic & Elaine Mosakowski, 2016. "Kicking Off Social Entrepreneurship: How A Sustainability Orientation Influences Crowdfunding Success," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(5), pages 738-767, July.
    26. Anglin, Aaron H. & Short, Jeremy C. & Drover, Will & Stevenson, Regan M. & McKenny, Aaron F. & Allison, Thomas H., 2018. "The power of positivity? The influence of positive psychological capital language on crowdfunding performance," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 470-492.
    27. Damodar Suar & Jyotiranjan Gochhayat, 2016. "Influence of Biological Sex and Gender Roles on Ethicality," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 134(2), pages 199-208, March.
    28. Silvio Vismara, 2016. "Equity retention and social network theory in equity crowdfunding," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 46(4), pages 579-590, April.
    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. Anglin, Aaron H. & Short, Jeremy C. & Drover, Will & Stevenson, Regan M. & McKenny, Aaron F. & Allison, Thomas H., 2018. "The power of positivity? The influence of positive psychological capital language on crowdfunding performance," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 470-492.
    2. Calic, Goran & Shevchenko, Anton, 2020. "How signal intensity of behavioral orientations affects crowdfunding performance: The role of entrepreneurial orientation in crowdfunding business ventures," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 115(C), pages 204-220.
    3. Maria Figueroa-Armijos & John P. Berns, 2022. "Vulnerable Populations and Individual Social Responsibility in Prosocial Crowdfunding: Does the Framing Matter for Female and Rural Entrepreneurs?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 177(2), pages 377-394, May.
    4. Pankaj C. Patel & Marcus T. Wolfe & Andrew S. Manikas, 2021. "Logic is (Somewhat) Overrated: Image-Based Versus Concept-Based Rhetoric in Crowdfunding Narratives," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 45(3), pages 600-625, May.
    5. Xiaobei Liang & Xiaojuan Hu & Jiang Jiang, 2020. "Research on the Effects of Information Description on Crowdfunding Success within a Sustainable Economy—The Perspective of Information Communication," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-36, January.
    6. Aaron H. Anglin & Christopher Courtney & Thomas H. Allison, 2022. "Venturing for Others, Subject to Role Expectations? A Role Congruity Theory Approach to Social Venture Crowd Funding," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 46(2), pages 421-448, March.
    7. Rama, Ali & Jiang, Chunxia & Johan, Sofia & Liu, Hong & Mai, Yong, 2022. "Religious and social narratives and crowdfunding success," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    8. Geiger, Mark, 2020. "A meta-analysis of the gender gap(s) in venture funding: Funder- and entrepreneur-driven perspectives," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 13(C).
    9. Yang, Jialiang & Li, Yaokuang & Calic, Goran & Shevchenko, Anton, 2020. "How multimedia shape crowdfunding outcomes: The overshadowing effect of images and videos on text in campaign information," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 6-18.
    10. Chan, C.S. Richard & Parhankangas, Annaleena & Sahaym, Arvin & Oo, Pyayt, 2020. "Bellwether and the herd? Unpacking the u-shaped relationship between prior funding and subsequent contributions in reward-based crowdfunding," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 35(2).
    11. Sirine Zribi, 2022. "Effects of social influence on crowdfunding performance: implications of the covid-19 pandemic," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 9(1), pages 1-8, December.
    12. Tajvarpour, Mohammad Hossein & Pujari, Devashish, 2022. "The influence of narrative description on the success of crowdfunding campaigns: The moderating role of quality signals," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 123-138.
    13. Uparna, Jayaram & Bingham, Chris, 2022. "Breaking “Bad”: Negativity’s benefit for entrepreneurial funding," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 1353-1365.
    14. Francesco Cappa & Michele Pinelli & Riccardo Maiolini & Maria Isabella Leone, 2021. "“Pledge” me your ears! The role of narratives and narrator experience in explaining crowdfunding success," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 57(2), pages 953-973, August.
    15. Messeni Petruzzelli, Antonio & Natalicchio, Angelo & Panniello, Umberto & Roma, Paolo, 2019. "Understanding the crowdfunding phenomenon and its implications for sustainability," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 141(C), pages 138-148.
    16. Jermain C. Kaminski & Christian Hopp, 2020. "Predicting outcomes in crowdfunding campaigns with textual, visual, and linguistic signals," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 55(3), pages 627-649, October.
    17. Berns, John P. & Jia, Yankun & Gondo, Maria, 2022. "Crowdfunding success in sustainability-oriented projects: An exploratory examination of the crowdfunding of 3D printers," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    18. Tafesse, Wondwesen, 2021. "Communicating crowdfunding campaigns: How message strategy, vivid media use and product type influence campaign success," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 252-263.
    19. Oo, Pyayt P. & Jiang, Lin & Sahaym, Arvin & Parhankangas, Annaleena & Chan, Richard, 2023. "Actions in words: How entrepreneurs use diversified and changing speech acts to achieve funding success," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 38(2).
    20. Chaim Letwin & Michael P. Ciuchta & Michael Johnson & Regan Stevenson & Cameron Ford, 2024. "Passion and attractiveness on display: an examination of gender bias in crowdfunding," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 63(1), pages 165-192, June.

    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:eee:jbvent:v:33:y:2018:i:6:p:780-812. 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: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/jbusvent .

    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.