6.0 The African Entrepreneur Behavioral Patterns: Entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship in Africa

(Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, Oct 2002 by Kiggundu, Moses N)

Successful entrepreneurs display a pattern of behavior different than the less successful ones. This is not surprising given that entrepreneurs differ in important demographic and psychological traits. Indeed, studies of individual differences are predicated on the premise that attributes have differential behavioral predictive validity (Stewart, 1996; McClelland & Winter, 1969; Frese, 2000). Entrepreneurial support programs such as training, consultancies, twinning arrangements and overseas visits are justified in part because they assume that they will bring about desired behavioral changes among participating entrepreneurs (Dia, 1996; Loucks, 1988). Like McClelland's earlier study in India, both LeVine (1966) and more recently Frese (2000) studied psychological attributes because they predicted and differentiated successful from unsuccessful entrepreneurial behavior.

The Giessen-Amsterdam model (Frese, 2000) is a behavioral theory of entrepreneurship because it assumes that personality variables work through goals and action strategies to determine entrepreneurial success or failure. Earlier, Hart (1972) found that more than one-half of the entrepreneurs interviewed reported hard work, honesty, and discipline as important determinants of success. Jorgensen et al. (1986) and Kiggundu (1988) reported that African entrepreneurs exercise various leadership roles in their respective communities more than non-entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs were reported to work relentlessly for long hours with lots of energy. The behavioral approach to entrepreneurial development is potentially promising if certain behavioral patterns can be consistently associated with entrepreneurial success, within clearly defined organizational and contextual variables.

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