Entrepreneurs and Evolutionary Biology: The Relationship between Testosterone and New Venture Creation

15 Pages Posted: 25 Mar 2011

See all articles by Roderick E. White

Roderick E. White

University of Western Ontario - Richard Ivey School of Business

Stewart Thornhill

University of Michigan, Stephen M. Ross School of Business

Elizabeth Hampson

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Date Written: 2003

Abstract

Attempts to discover individual differences related to entrepreneurial behavior have had limited success and even less acceptance amongst management scholars. Taking a different approach this study explores the relationship between a heritable biological characteristic of the individual, testosterone level, and prior entrepreneurial experience. Such a relationship is consistent with evolutionary psychological theory. The evidence from this study supports the theory. As hypothesized, higher testosterone levels are associated with prior new venture start-up experience, both directly and mediated by psychological disposition towards risk.

Keywords: Entrepreneurship

JEL Classification: M13

Suggested Citation

White, Roderick E. and Thornhill, Stewart and Hampson, Elizabeth, Entrepreneurs and Evolutionary Biology: The Relationship between Testosterone and New Venture Creation (2003). Babson College, Babson Kauffman Entrepreneurship Research Conference (BKERC), 2002-2006, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1783704

Roderick E. White (Contact Author)

University of Western Ontario - Richard Ivey School of Business ( email )

1151 Richmond Street North
London, Ontario N6A 3K7
Canada

Stewart Thornhill

University of Michigan, Stephen M. Ross School of Business ( email )

701 Tappan Street
Ann Arbor, MI MI 48109
United States

Elizabeth Hampson

affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email )

Do you have a job opening that you would like to promote on SSRN?

Paper statistics

Downloads
93
Abstract Views
1,770
Rank
456,548
PlumX Metrics