Sustainable Entrepreneurship: Broadening the Definition of "Opportunity"

Abstract:     
A firm’s ability to seek out new, successful opportunities is essential for success.Using an intentions-based model, the emergence of environmental opportunities and the development of cognitive infrastructures that are opportunity-receptive are analyzed. Initially, the theory and evidence relating to sustainable opportunity are briefly discussed.Then the cognition-based model of environmental opportunities is presented.The "mental models" or schema needed to increase a firm's potential for seeking environmental opportunities are examined, as are critical attitudes and factors influencing intentions. To further the concept of intentions, examples of antecedents to intentions are presented--i.e., perceived desirability--personal attitude; perceived desirability--social norms; perceived feasibility--self-efficacy; perceived feasibility--collective efficacy; exogenous factors; precipitating factors.The tools necessary to build a supportive cognitive infrastructure are discussed, including the need to increase feasibility perceptions and to increase desirability perceptions. (AKP)

Keywords: Intentions, Cognition, Opportunity recognition, Perceptions, Cognitive models

Accepted Paper Series