Abstract
Actors in a position to broker and connect otherwise disconnected parts of a social network are spanning structural holes. The spanning of structural holes can leverage performance, but in this paper I study if it can also influence entrepreneurial decision making. Studying a network of entrepreneurs – mostly farmers – who have built their own hydroelectric micro-power plants in rural Nozrway, I find that actors spanning structural holes tend to build relatively large plants. The use of instrumental variables indicates that the spanning of structural holes is a cause, and not an effect, of entrepreneurs’ decisions about plant size. The paper discusses how the finding can have implications for our understanding of decision making and entrepreneurial risk taking beyond the studied context. I also find that the entrepreneurs’ formal level of education is positively associated with the size of the plants being built.
References
Aarstad, J. 2012. “Do Structural Holes and Network Connectivity Really Affect Entrepreneurial Performance?” Journal of Entrepreneurship21(2):253–68.10.1177/0971355712449788Suche in Google Scholar
Aarstad, J., S. A.Haugland, and A.Greve. 2010. “Performance Spillover Effects in Entrepreneurial Networks: Assessing a Dyadic Theory of Social Capital.” Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice34(5):1003–20.10.1111/j.1540-6520.2009.00346.xSuche in Google Scholar
Barnes, J. A. 1979. “Network Analysis: Orienting Notion, Rigorous Technique, or Substantive Field of Study?” In Perspectives on Social Network Analysis, edited by P. W. Holland and S. Leinhardt, 403–23. New York: Academic.10.1016/B978-0-12-352550-5.50024-9Suche in Google Scholar
Berkowitz, D., and D. N.DeJong. 2005. “Entrepreneurship and Post-Socialist Growth.” Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics67(1):25–46.10.1111/j.1468-0084.2005.00108.xSuche in Google Scholar
Bernoulli, D. 1738/1954. “Exposition of a New Theory on the Measurement of Risk.” Econometrica22(1):22–36.10.2307/1909829Suche in Google Scholar
Bitler, M. P., T. J.Moskowitz, and A.Vissing-Jorgensen. 2005. “Testing Agency Theory with Entrepreneur Effort and Wealth.” Journal of Finance60(2):539–76.10.1111/j.1540-6261.2005.00739.xSuche in Google Scholar
Borgatti, S. P., M. G.Everett, and L. C.Freeman. 2002. UCINET 6.135. Natick: Analytic Technologies.Suche in Google Scholar
Brealey, R. A., S. C.Myers, and A. J.Marcus. 1995. Fundamentals of Corporate Finance. New York: McGraw-Hill.Suche in Google Scholar
Burt, R. S. 1992. Structural Holes: The Social Structure of Competition. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.Suche in Google Scholar
Burt, R. S. 2000. “The Network Structure of Social Capital.” In Research in Organizational Behavior, edited by R. I.Sutton and B. M.Staw, 148–92. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.Suche in Google Scholar
Burt, R. S. 2004. “Structural Holes and Good Ideas.” American Journal of Sociology110(2):349–99.10.1086/421787Suche in Google Scholar
Burt, R. S. 2005. Brokerage and Closure: An Introduction to Social Capital. New York: Oxford University Press.Suche in Google Scholar
Burt, R. S., R. M.Hogarth, and C.Michaud. 2000. “The Social Capital of French and American Managers.” Organization Science11(2):123–47.10.1287/orsc.11.2.123.12506Suche in Google Scholar
Conover, W. J. 1999. Practical Nonparametric Statistics, 3rd ed. New York: John Wiley.Suche in Google Scholar
Cronbach, L. J., and P. E.Meehl. 1955. “Construct Validity for Psychological Tests.” Psychological Bulletin52:281–302.10.1037/h0040957Suche in Google Scholar
Crossan, M. M., H. W.Lane, and R. E.White. 1999. “An Organizational Learning Framework: From Intuition to Institution.” Academy of Management Review24(3):522–37. doi: 10.2307/259140.Suche in Google Scholar
De Mel, S., D.McKenzie, and C.Woodruff. 2008. “Returns to Capital in Microenterprises: Evidence from a Field Experiment.” Quarterly Journal of Economics123(4):1329–72.10.1162/qjec.2008.123.4.1329Suche in Google Scholar
Dunn, S. 2000. “Micropower: The Next Electrical Era.” In Worldwatch Paper, edited by J. A.Peterson, 5–94. Washington, DC: Worldwatch Institute.Suche in Google Scholar
Freeman, L. C. 1979. “Centrality in Social Networks: Conceptual Clarification.” Social Networks1(3):215–39.10.1016/0378-8733(78)90021-7Suche in Google Scholar
Garcia-Mainar, I., and V. M.Montuenga-Gomez. 2005. “Education Returns of Wage Earners and Self-Employed Workers: Portugal vs. Spain.” Economics of Education Review24(2):161–70.10.1016/j.econedurev.2004.07.004Suche in Google Scholar
Garmaise, M. J. 2008. “Production in Entrepreneurial Firms: The Effects of Financial Constraints on Labor and Capital.” Review of Financial Studies21(2):543–77.10.1093/rfs/hhm081Suche in Google Scholar
Grable, J. E. 2000. “Financial Risk Tolerance and Additional Factors That Affect Risk Taking in Everyday Money Matters.” Journal of Business and Psychology14(4):625–30. doi: 10.1023/a:1022994314982.Suche in Google Scholar
Grilo, I., and R.Thurik. 2008. “Determinants of Entrepreneurial Engagement Levels in Europe and the US.” Industrial and Corporate Change17(6):1113–45.10.1093/icc/dtn044Suche in Google Scholar
Gulati, R. 1998. “Alliances and Networks.” Strategic Management Journal19(4):293–317.10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199804)19:4<293::AID-SMJ982>3.0.CO;2-MSuche in Google Scholar
Hansen, L. P. 1982. “Large Sample Properties of Generalized Method of Moments Estimators.” Econometrica50(4):1029–54.10.2307/1912775Suche in Google Scholar
Jordahl, H., P.Poutvaara, and J.Tuomala. 2009. “Education Returns of Wage Earners and Self-Employed Workers: Comment.” Economics of Education Review28(5):641–44.10.1016/j.econedurev.2008.07.003Suche in Google Scholar
Kahneman, D., and A.Tversky. 1979. “Prospect Theory: An Analysis of Decision Under Risk.” Econometrica47:263–91.10.2307/1914185Suche in Google Scholar
March, J. G. 1991. “Exploration and Exploitation in Organizational Learning.” Organization Science2(1):71–87.10.1287/orsc.2.1.71Suche in Google Scholar
Nieminen, J. 1974. “On Centrality in a Graph.” Scandinavian Journal of Psychology15(4):322–36.10.1111/j.1467-9450.1974.tb00598.xSuche in Google Scholar
Oosterbeek, H., M.van Praag, and A.Ijsselstein. 2010. “The Impact of Entrepreneurship Education on Entrepreneurship Skills and Motivation.” European Economic Review54(3):442–54.10.1016/j.euroecorev.2009.08.002Suche in Google Scholar
O’Brien, R. M. 2007. “A Caution Regarding Rules of Thumb for Variance Inflation Factors.” Quality & Quantity41(5):673–90.10.1007/s11135-006-9018-6Suche in Google Scholar
Parker, S. C., and C. M.Van Praag. 2006. “Schooling, Capital Constraints, and Entrepreneurial Performance: The Endogenous Triangle.” Journal of Business & Economic Statistics24(4):416–31.10.1198/073500106000000215Suche in Google Scholar
Reinholt, M. I. A., T.Pedersen, and N. J.Foss. 2011. “Why a Central Network Position Isn’t Enough: The Role of Motivation and Ability for Knowledge Sharing in Employee Networks.” Academy of Management Journal54(6):1277–97. doi: 10.5465.amj.2009.0007.Suche in Google Scholar
Rodan, S. 2010. “Structural Holes and Managerial Performance: Identifying the Underlying Mechanisms.” Social Networks32(3):168–79.10.1016/j.socnet.2009.11.002Suche in Google Scholar
Samila, S., and O.Sorenson. 2010. “Venture Capital as a Catalyst to Commercialization.” Research Policy39(10):1348–60.10.1016/j.respol.2010.08.006Suche in Google Scholar
Samila, S., and O.Sorenson. 2011. “Non-compete Covenants: Incentives to Innovate or Impediments to Growth.” Management Science57(3):425–38.10.1287/mnsc.1100.1280Suche in Google Scholar
SAS/JMP. 2012. Version 10. Cary, NC: SAS Institute Inc.Suche in Google Scholar
Shane, S., and S.Venkataraman. 2000. “The Promise of Entrepreneurship as a Field of Research.” Academy of Management Review25(1):217–26. doi: 10.5465/amr.2000.2791611.Suche in Google Scholar
Shipilov, A. V. 2006. “Network Strategies and Performance of Canadian Investment Banks.” Academy of Management Journal49(3):590–604.10.5465/amj.2006.21794676Suche in Google Scholar
StataCorp. 2009. Version 11, Vol. StataCorp LP. College Station, TX: StataCorp LP.Suche in Google Scholar
Stock, J. H., J. H.Wright, and M.Yogo. 2002. “A Survey of Weak Instruments and Weak Identification in Generalized Method of Moments.” Journal of Business and Economic Statistics20(4):518–29.10.1198/073500102288618658Suche in Google Scholar
The Economist. 2000. “The Dawn of Micropower.” The Economist, August 5:75–76.Suche in Google Scholar
The Economist. 2001. “Here and Now.” The Economist, February 10:18–21.Suche in Google Scholar
Van der Waerden, B. L. 1953. “Order Tests for the Two-Sample Problem and Their Power.” Indagationes Mathematicae15(series A):303–16.10.1016/S1385-7258(53)50039-3Suche in Google Scholar
Vissa, B., and A. S.Chacar. 2009. “Leveraging Ties: The Contingent Value of Entrepreneurial Teams’ External Advice Networks on Indian Software Venture Performance.” Strategic Management Journal30(11):1179–91.10.1002/smj.785Suche in Google Scholar
von Neumann, J., and O.Morgenstern. 1953. Theory of Games and Economic Behavior, 3rd ed. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.Suche in Google Scholar
Waguespack, D. M., and L.Fleming. 2009. “Scanning the Commons? Evidence on the Benefits to Startups Participating in Open Standards Development.” Management Science55(2):210–23.10.1287/mnsc.1080.0944Suche in Google Scholar
Wooldridge, J. M. 2010. Econometric Analysis of Cross Section and Panel Data, 2nd ed. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.Suche in Google Scholar
Zaheer, A., and G. G.Bell. 2005. “Benefiting From Network Position: Firm Capabilities, Structural Holes, and Performance.” Strategic Management Journal26(9):809–25.10.1002/smj.482Suche in Google Scholar
Zaheer, A., and G.Soda. 2009. “Network Evolution: The Origins of Structural Holes.” Administrative Science Quarterly54(1):1–31.10.2189/asqu.2009.54.1.1Suche in Google Scholar
Note:
An early version of this manuscript was issued as a conference proceeding at the 2012 IEEE 3rd International Conference on Emergency Management Sciences (ICEMMS 2012). Beijing, China.
©2014 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin / Boston
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Frontmatter
- Competitive Research Articles
- Structural Holes and Entrepreneurial Decision Making
- Understanding Diversification Strategy in Venture Capital Market
- A Multi-level Study of Entrepreneurship Education among Pakistani University Students
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Frontmatter
- Competitive Research Articles
- Structural Holes and Entrepreneurial Decision Making
- Understanding Diversification Strategy in Venture Capital Market
- A Multi-level Study of Entrepreneurship Education among Pakistani University Students