Individual differences in entrepreneurial tendencies: The impact of self-employment and the Dark Triad

Abstract

The study of entrepreneurial tendencies based on the principles of differential psychology represents an interesting model for studying entrepreneurial personality; however, this topic has received little research. The current study addresses the relationship between entrepreneurial tendencies and Big Five, Dark Triad personality traits while controlling for the effects of age, gender, and occupational status. The participants were 591 adult workers who completed the Spanish versions of the Measure of Entrepreneurial Tendencies and Abilities (META; Ahmetoglu, Leutner, & Chamorro-Premuzic, 2011), the Ten-Item Personality Inventory (TIPI; Gosling, Rentfrow, & Swann, 2003), and the Dirty Dozen scale (Jonason & Webster, 2010). Being male, being self-employed, and having greater openness to experience, conscientiousness, and narcissism accounted for 41 % of the variability in entrepreneurship. This study contributes to consolidating the approach to entrepreneurial tendencies and addresses some of the limitations of previous research.