Abstract:

Entrepreneurship and psychological well‑being are closely intertwined, especially in the start‑up phase where founders juggle numerous activities under high uncertainty (Uy et al., 2010; Stephan, 2018). This paper examines the hypothesis that “doing more” early in the entrepreneurial process - because it is expected to increase goal attainment and thus feelings of efficacy - may be associated either with higher work‑related well‑being or, conversely, with increased strain (Wiklund et al., 2019). Adopting an activity‑based perspective, we draw on self‑determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 2000) and the job demands–resources (JD‑R) model (Bakker & Demerouti, 2017) to conceptualise entrepreneurial activities as micro‑demands and micro‑resources.

Empirically, we employ a sequential three‑phase design. First, ten longitudinal case studies of French deeptech start‑ups, followed every three months over two and a half years, reveal an initial repertoire of activities and a performance “puzzle” (eight closures, one acquisition, one transformation into an engineering consultancy). Second, 155 semi‑structured interviews with entrepreneurs - exploring motivations, well‑being, workload, constraints, resources and coping strategies - allow us to stabilise a taxonomy of 100 activities grouped into ten blocks and to develop a survey instrument (Aldrich & Ruef, 2006; Shane & Venkataraman, 2000). Third, this questionnaire is administered to 66 founders drawn from this cohort, who report, for each activity, their motivational regulation, delegation, and level of achievement, as well as their psychological well‑being at work, burnout, and perceived attainment of start‑up objectives.

Quantitative analyses show that founders who perform a greater number of distinct activities at venture launch report higher psychological well‑being at work, despite non‑trivial levels of burnout, underscoring the simultaneously resourceful and demanding nature of early entrepreneurial work (Cardon & Patel, 2015; Stephan et al., 2022). Identified (meaning‑based) motivation dominates across most activity blocks; founders retain control over identity‑central and externally facing activities and delegate technical tasks only partially - a surprising pattern given that the sample mainly comprises scientist and engineer founders of deeptech start‑ups (Carsrud & Brännback, 2011). The paper thus introduces an activity‑based JD‑R framework, a taxonomy and task‑level measurement tool, and offers new empirical evidence on how early activity portfolios and motivational profiles shape founders’ well‑being in the start‑up phase and influence the achievement of venture objectives.

Please choose your submission type: Full Paper

Primary Track: Entrepreneurship

Keywords: Entrepreneurship Theories;International entrepreneurship

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Mrs. AMIRA CHAABANE