The Effect of Entrepreneur’s Fear of Failure on Firm’s Entrepreneurial Orientation

Abstract

This study focuses on the fear of failure (FF) in entrepreneurship and its effect on the entrepreneurial orientation (EO) as a strategic orientation in firms. There has been much research on EO as a predictor of organizations’ performance since it is considered a manifestation of the entrepreneurial direction inside the organization. Yet, the research on the relationships between individual-level variables and EO itself still has room for contribution, especially the internal aspects related to the entrepreneur or the manager. Therefore, this research aims to explore FF in entrepreneurship and its inhibiting and motivating roles. In addition, given that the firm is the unit of analysis in this study, this research explained how an entrepreneur’s FF affects the EO of the firm amidst the COVID-19 outbreak. The study administered a quantitative research design using a structured questionnaire. The results showed a positive influence of the entrepreneur’s fear of failure on the firm’s entrepreneurial orientation manifested in the firm’s innovativeness dimension. However, the other two dimensions that contribute to the firm’s EO representation (proactiveness & risk-taking) showed insignificant relationships with the entrepreneur’s FF.