An entrepreneur puts together a business and accepts the associated risk to make a profit. While this definition serves as a simple but accurate description of entrepreneurs, it fails to explain the phenomena of entrepreneurship itself. A number of theories exist, but all of them fall into one of five main categories
Economic entrepreneurship theories date back to the first half of the 1700s with the work of Richard Cantillon, who introduced the idea of entrepreneurs as risk takers. The classic, neoclassical and Austrian Market process schools of thought all pose explanations for entrepreneurship that focus, for the most part, on economic conditions and the opportunities they create. Economic theories of entrepreneurship tend to receive significant criticism for failing to recognize the dynamic, open nature of market systems, ignoring the unique nature of entrepreneurial activity and downplaying the diverse contexts in which entrepreneurship occurs.
Resource-based theories focus on the way individuals leverage different types of resources to get entrepreneurial efforts off the ground. Access to capital improves the chances of getting a new venture off the ground, but entrepreneurs often start ventures with little ready capital. Other types of resources entrepreneurs might leverage include social networks and the information they provide, as well as human resources, such as education. In some cases, the intangible elements of leadership the entrepreneur adds to the mix operate as resource that a business cannot replace.
Psychological theories of entrepreneurship focus on the individual and the mental or emotional elements that drive entrepreneurial individuals. A theory put forward by psychologist David McCLelland, a Harvard emeritus professor, offers that entrepreneurs possess a need for achievement that drives their activity. Julian Rotter, professor emeritus at the University of Connecticut, put forward a locus of control theory. Rotter’s theory holds that people with a strong internal locus of control believe their actions can influence the external world and research suggests most entrepreneurs possess trait. A final approach, though unsupported by research, suggests personality traits ranging from creativity and resilience to optimism drive entrepreneurial behavior.
The sociological theory centers its explanation for entrepreneurship on the various social contexts that enable the opportunities entrepreneurs leverage. Paul D. Reynolds, a George Washington University research professor, singles out four such contexts: social networks, a desire for a meaningful life, ethnic identification and social-political environment factors. The anthropological model approaches the question of entrepreneurship by placing it within the context of culture and examining how cultural forces, such as social attitudes, shape both the perception of entrepreneurship and the behaviors of entrepreneurs.
Prolific business management author, professor and corporate consultant, Peter Drucker put forward an opportunity-based theory. Drucker contends that entrepreneurs excel at seeing and taking advantage of possibilities created by social, technological and cultural changes. For example, where a business that caters to senior citizens might view a sudden influx of younger residents to a neighborhood as a potential death stroke, an entrepreneur might see it as a chance to open a new club.
