Share:


Peculiarity of hybrid entrepreneurs – revisiting Lazear’s theory of entrepreneurship

Abstract

The aim of this study is to explore and elaborate the concept of hybrid entrepreneurship, i.e., a simultaneous mix of self-employment (entrepreneurship) and salary employment. Lazear’s theory of entrepreneurship is assessed in terms whether it can explain the phenomenon of being a hybrid entrepreneur. The hypothesis is that the probability of linking a salary job with one’s own business increases with the variety and level of education gained, the broadness of professional and management experience but also the level of entrepreneurial self-efficacy. The hypotheses are tested with multivariate logistic regression, using survey data gathered from 1600 entrepreneurs. In light of the results, Lazear’s theory cannot be unambiguously extended to the case of hybrid entrepreneurs. Although the probability of being a hybrid entrepreneur increases with broader professional and managerial experience, at the same time it diminishes as the level and diversity of education increase. The results suggest that hybrid entrepreneurs are an importantly discrete population and therefore need to be treated separately. The theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed.

Keyword : hybrid entrepreneurship, part-time entrepreneurship, Lazear’s theory of entrepreneurship, jack-of-all-trades, entrepreneurial skills, career choice

How to Cite
Kurczewska, A. ., Mackiewicz, M. ., Doryń, W. ., & Wawrzyniak, D. . (2020). Peculiarity of hybrid entrepreneurs – revisiting Lazear’s theory of entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 21(1), 277-300. https://doi.org/10.3846/jbem.2020.11959
Published in Issue
Feb 13, 2020
Abstract Views
3063
PDF Downloads
1925
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

References

Åstebro, T., & Thompson, P. (2011). Entrepreneurs, jacks of all trades or hobos? Research Policy, 40(5), 637–649. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2011.01.010

Backes-Gellner, U., & Moog, P. (2013). The disposition to become an entrepreneur and the jacks-of-alltrades in social and human capital. The Journal of Socio-Economics, 47, 55–72. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socec.2013.08.008

Bandura, A. (1995). Self efficacy in changing societies. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511527692

Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. Macmillan.

Barbosa, S. D., Gerhardt, M. W., & Kickul, J. R. (2007). The role of cognitive style and risk preference on entrepreneurial self-efficacy and entrepreneurial intentions. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 13(4), 86–104. https://doi.org/10.1177/10717919070130041001

Baron, R. A., Mueller, B. A., & Wolfe, M. T. (2016). Self-efficacy and entrepreneurs’ adoption of unattainable goals: The restraining effects of self-control. Journal of Business Venturing, 31(1), 55–71. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2015.08.002

Belasen, A. T. (2017). Women in management: A framework for sustainable work–life integration (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315474571

Blanchflower, D. G., & Oswald, A. J. (1998). What makes an entrepreneur? Journal of Labor Economics, 16(1), 26–60. https://doi.org/10.1086/209881

Block, J. H., & Landgraf, A. (2016). Transition from part-time entrepreneurship to full-time entrepreneurship: The role of financial and non-financial motives. International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, 12(1), 259–282. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11365-014-0331-6

Blume, B. D., & Covin, J. G. (2011). Attributions to intuition in the venture founding process: Do entrepreneurs actually use intuition or just say that they do? Journal of Business Venturing, 26(1), 137–151. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2009.04.002

Bögenhold, D. (2019). From hybrid entrepreneurs to entrepreneurial billionaires: Observations on the socioeconomic heterogeneity of self-employment. American Behavioral Scientist, 63(2), 129–146. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764218794231

Boudreaux, C. J., Nikolaev, B. N., & Klein, P. (2019). Socio-cognitive traits and entrepreneurship: The moderating role of economic institutions. Journal of Business Venturing, 34(1), 178–196. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2018.08.003

Boyd, N. G., & Vozikis, G. S. (1994). The influence of self-efficacy on the development of entrepreneurial intentions and actions. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 18(4), 63–77. https://doi.org/10.1177/104225879401800404

Brown, T., & Farshid, M. (2017). To grow or not to grow, that is the question. Entreprendre & Innover, 34(3), 29–37. https://doi.org/10.3917/entin.034.0029

Bryant, P. (2007). Self-regulation and decision heuristics in entrepreneurial opportunity evaluation and exploitation. Management Decision, 45(4), 732–748. https://doi.org/10.1108/00251740710746006

Burke, A. E., FitzRoy, F. R., & Nolan, M. A. (2008). What makes a die-hard entrepreneur? Beyond the ‘employee or entrepreneur’ dichotomy. Small Business Economics, 31(2), 93–115. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-007-9086-6

Burmeister-Lamp, K., Lévesque, M., & Schade, C. (2012). Are entrepreneurs influenced by risk attitude, regulatory focus or both? An experiment on entrepreneurs’ time allocation. Journal of Business Venturing, 27(4), 456–476. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2011.12.001

Chen, C. C., Greene, P. G., & Crick, A. (1998): Does entrepreneurial self-efficacy distinguish entrepreneurs from managers? Journal of Business Venturing, 13(4), 295–316. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0883-9026(97)00029-3

Douglas, E. J., & Fitzsimmons, J. R. (2013). Intrapreneurial intentions versus entrepreneurial intentions: Distinct constructs with different antecedents. Small Business Economics, 41(1), 115–132. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-012-9419-y

Dunn, T., & Holtz-Eakin, D. (2000). Financial capital, human capital, and the transition to self-employment: Evidence from intergenerational links. Journal of Labor Economics, 18(2), 282–305. https://doi.org/10.1086/209959

Dzomonda, O., & Masocha, R. (2018). Demystifying the nexus between social capital and entrepreneurial success in South Africa. Academy of Entrepreneurship Journal, 25(1), 1–10.

Evans, D. S., & Jovanovic, B. (1989). An estimated model of entrepreneurial choice under liquidity constraints. Journal of Political Economy, 97(4), 808–827. https://doi.org/10.1086/261629

Fayard, A.-L. (2019), Notes on the meaning of work: Labor, work, and action in the 21st century. Journal of Management Inquiry, pp. 1–14 (in press). https://doi.org/10.1177/1056492619841705

Ferreira, C., Robertson, J., Blair, A., McMullan, K., & Morrison, S. (2018). Look before you leap: An analysis of factors driving the transition from hybrid to full-time entrepreneurship. Summary Brief. In J. G. Fowler & J. Weiser (Eds.), Ethical decisions in lifestyle choices (pp. 286–287). Society for Marketing Advances Proceedings, November 2017. Louisville, Kentucky.

Folta, T. B., Delmar, F., & Wennberg, K. (2010). Hybrid entrepreneurship. Management Science, 56(2), 253–269. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.1090.1094

Gartner, W. B. (1988). “Who is an entrepreneur?” is the wrong question. American Journal of Small Business, 12(4), 11–32. https://doi.org/10.1177/104225878801200401

Global Entrepreneurship Monitor. (2018). Global report 2017/18. https://www.gemconsortium.org/report/gem-2017-2018-global-report

Gomezelj, D., & Antončič, B. (2014). Employees’ knowledge determinants in SMEs: The case of Slovenia. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 16(2), 422–444. https://doi.org/10.3846/16111699.2012.734326

Gruenert, J. C. (1999). Second job entrepreneurs. Occupational Outlook Quarterly, 43(3), 18–26.

Hartog, J., Van Praag, M., & Van Der Sluis, J. (2010). If you are so smart, why aren’t you an entrepreneur? Returns to cognitive and social ability: Entrepreneurs versus employees. Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, 19(4), 947–989. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1530-9134.2010.00274.x

Hsieh, C., Parker, S. C., & van Praag, C. M. (2017). Risk, balanced skills and entrepreneurship. Small Business Economics, 48(2), 287–302. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-016-9785-y

International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO). (2007). Resolution Concerning Updating the International Standard Classification of Occupations. 34 p. www.ilo.org/public/english/bureau/stat/isco/docs/resol08.pdf

Jenkins, A. S., Wiklund, J., & Brundin, E. (2014). Individual responses to firm failure: Appraisals, grief, and the influence of prior failure experience. Journal of Business Venturing, 29(1), 17–33. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2012.10.006

Kickul, J., Gundry, L. K., Barbosa, S. D., & Whitcanack, L. (2009). Intuition versus analysis? Testing Differential Models of Cognitive style on Entrepreneurial self–efficacy and the new venture creation process. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 33(2), 439–453. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2009.00298.x

Kihlstrom, R. E., & Laffont, J. J. (1979). A general equilibrium entrepreneurial theory of firm formation based on risk aversion. Journal of Political Economy, 87(4), 719–748. https://doi.org/10.1086/260790

Knatko, D., Shirokova, G., & Bogatyreva, K. (2016). Industry choice by young entrepreneurs in different country settings: The role of human and financial capital. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 17(4), 613–627. https://doi.org/10.3846/16111699.2015.1113199

Lazear, E. P. (2002). Entrepreneurship (Working Paper 9109). National Bureau of Economic Research. Cambridge. https://doi.org/10.3386/w9109

Lazear, E. P. (2005). Entrepreneurship. Journal of Labor Economics, 23(4), 649–680. https://doi.org/10.1086/491605

Lechmann, D. S. J., & Schnabel, C. (2014). Are the self-employed really jacks-of-all-trades? Testing the assumptions and implications of Lazear’s theory of entrepreneurship with German data. Small Business Economics, 42(1), 59–76. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-012-9464-6

McGee, J. E., Peterson, M., Mueller, S. L., & Sequeira, J. M. (2009). Entrepreneurial self-efficacy: Refining the measure. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 33(4), 965–988. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2009.00304.x

Nordström, C., Sirén, C. A., Thorgren, S., & Wincent, J. (2016). Passion in hybrid entrepreneurship: The impact of entrepreneurial teams and tenure. Baltic Journal of Management, 11(2), 167–186. https://doi.org/10.1108/BJM-01-2015-0007

O’Brien, J., & Folta, T. (2009). Sunk costs, uncertainty and market exit: A real options perspective. Industrial and Corporate Change, 18(5), 807–833. https://doi.org/10.1093/icc/dtp014

Pérez-Bustamante Ilander, G. O., Marques, C. S. E., S. Jalali, M., & Ferreira, A. F. F. (2016). The impact of continuous training in small and medium enterprises: Lessons from an industrial case analysis. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 17(2), 234–250. https://doi.org/10.3846/16111699.2014.938359

Petrova, K. (2012). Part-time entrepreneurship and financial constraints: Evidence from the panel study of entrepreneurial dynamics. Small Business Economics, 39(2), 473–493. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-010-9310-7

Petrova, K. (2011). Part-time entrepreneurship, learning and ability. Journal and Management Policy and Practice, 12(1), 64–75.

Raffiee, J., & Feng, J. (2014). Should I quit my day job? A hybrid path to entrepreneurship. Academy of Management Journal, 57(4), 936–963. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2012.0522

Saiz-Alvarez, J. (2019). New approaches and theories of entrepreneurship. M. Corrales-Estrada (Ed.), Innovation and entrepreneurship: A new mindset for emerging markets (pp. 13–30). Emerald Publishing Limited. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-78973-701-120191004

Schulz, M., Urbig, D., & Procher, V. (2016). Hybrid entrepreneurship and public policy: The case of firm entry deregulation. Journal of Business Venturing, 31(3), 272–286. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2016.01.002

Schulz, M., Urbig, D., & Procher, V. (2017). The role of hybrid entrepreneurship in explaining multiple job holders’ earnings structure. Journal of Business Venturing Insights, 7, 9–14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbvi.2016.12.002

Silva, O. (2007). The jack-of-all-trades entrepreneur: Innate talent or acquired skill? Economics Letters, 97(2), 118–123. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.econlet.2007.02.027

Smallbone, D., & Welter, F. (2001). The distinctiveness of entrepreneurship in transition economies. Small Business Economics, 16(4), 249–262. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1011159216578

Solesvik, M. Z. (2017). Hybrid entrepreneurship: How and why entrepreneurs combine employment with self-employment. Technology Innovation Management Review, 7(3), 33–41. https://doi.org/10.22215/timreview/1063

Spanjer, A., & van Witteloostuijn, A. (2017), The entrepreneur’s experiential diversity and entrepreneurial performance. Small Business Economics, 49(1), 141–161. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-016-9811-0

Stuetzer, M., Obschonka, M., Davidsson, P., & Schmitt-Rodermund, E. (2013). Where do entrepreneurial skills come from? Applied Economics Letters, 20(12), 1183–1186. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504851.2013.797554

Tegtmeier, S., Kurczewska, A., & Halberstadt, J. (2016). Are women graduates jacquelines-of-all-trades? Challenging Lazear’s view on entrepreneurship. Small Business Economics, 47(1), 77–94. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-016-9727-8

Thorgren, S., Nordström, C., & Wincent, J. (2014). Hybrid entrepreneurship: The Importance of passion. Baltic Journal of Management, 9(3), 314–329. https://doi.org/10.1108/BJM-11-2013-0175

Thorgren, S., Sirén, C., Nordström, C., & Wincent, J. (2016). Hybrid entrepreneurs’ second-step choice: The nonlinear relationship between age and intention to enter full-time entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Venturing Insights, 5(1), 14–18. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbvi.2015.12.001

Tumasjan, A., & Braun, R. (2012). In the eye of the beholder: How regulatory focus and self-efficacy interact in influencing opportunity recognition. Journal of Business Venturing, 27(6), 622–636. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2011.08.001

Velasco, M. (2012). More than just good grades: candidates’ perceptions about the skills and attributes employers seek in new graduates. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 13(3), 499–517. https://doi.org/10.3846/16111699.2011.620150

Viljamaa, A. H., & Varamäki, E. M. (2015). Do persistent and transitory hybrid entrepreneurs differ? International Journal of Social, Behavioral, Educational, Economic, Business and Industrial Engineering, 9(3), 936–940.

Viljamaa, A., Varamäki, E., & Joensuu-Salo, S. (2017). Best of both worlds? Persistent hybrid entrepreneurship. Journal of Enterprising Culture, 25(4), 339–360. https://doi.org/10.1142/S0218495817500133

Wagner, J. (2003). Testing Lazear’s jack-of-all-trades view of entrepreneurship with German micro data. Applied Economics Letters, 10(11), 687–689. https://doi.org/10.1080/1350485032000133273

Wagner, J. (2006). Are nascent entrepreneurs “Jacks-of-all-trades”? A test of Lazear’s theory of entrepreneurship with German data. Applied Economics, 38(20), 2415–2419. https://doi.org/10.1080/00036840500427783

Wennberg, K., Folta, T. B., & Delmar, F. (2006). A real options model of stepwise entry into selfemployment. In Babson College Entrepreneurship Research Conference (BCERC). Bloomington, IN.

Wood, R., & Bandura, A. (1989). Social cognitive theory of organizational management. The Academy of Management Review, 14(3), 361–384. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1989.4279067

Xi, G., Block, J. H., Lasch, F., Robert, F., & Thurik, R. (2017). Mode of entry into hybrid entrepreneurship: New venture start-up versus business takeover. International Review of Entrepreneurship, 16(2), 217–240. Article 1579.

Zhao, H., Seibert, S. E., & Hills, G. E. (2005). The mediating role of self-efficacy in the development of entrepreneurial intentions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 90(6), 1265. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.90.6.1265