Dear Colleagues,
The next Entrepreneurship and Innovation Policy Research virtual seminar is Wednesday, November 1, from 11:00-12:00 ET. Ouafaa Hmaddi (City University of New York) - will present "Accelerators or brakes? A field experiment on encouraging entrepreneurship in Morocco" (with Peter Younkin). Valentina Assenova (Wharton) will discuss. Click HERE to register for the 11/1 seminar (abstract is below). We hope you join us.
Please visit this LINK to view and register for upcoming seminars.
- Tim Folta (UCONN), Maryann Feldman (ASU), and Supradeep Dutta (Rutgers U)
Abstract: Many programs across the world seek to foster entrepreneurship by awarding scarce resources via competitions. Research has shown that these programs improve founder decision-making and firm performance, even in resource-poor environments. Therefore, there is much optimism that these may prove a useful tool in reducing inequality and catalyzing development. But selecting founders via a competition, with minimal means of determining quality, raises an interesting empirical puzzle: What becomes of the rejected founders? Research in entrepreneurship and social psychology make contradictory predictions about whether these rejections will prove consequential. We test both claims using a field experiment in Morocco combined with one-year of follow-up survey data. Our findings indicate that the act of rejection disincentivizes future pursuits among disadvantaged founders, leading potential founders to exit entrepreneurship altogether.