Who Am I?

Scholars have invested a considerable amount of effort in understanding the

different types of motives that propel entrepreneurs but we know relatively little

about where entrepreneurial motivation originates. In this dissertation, I offer that

one source of the particularly strong entrepreneurial motive I define as passion is the

ideal entrepreneurial identity, an aspirational self-conception that fuels an intense

drive for entrepreneurial activity.

Identities are internalized meanings and expectations of behavior tied to

certain societal roles that we occupy or wish to occupy (Stryker, 1968). Put simply,

identities answer the question “Who am I?” I apply identity theory (Stryker & Burke,

2000) to propose that some individuals may possess an ideal entrepreneurial identity

(an aspirational version of their entrepreneurial identity) that is the genesis for their

motivation towards entrepreneurial behaviors. In addition, I focus my research

surrounding identities on the intense motives such as passion likely to be particularly

prominent for entrepreneurs. While passion is often cited as a key element in the

entrepreneurial process (Smilor, 1997), it has received little empirical or theoretical

attention (Shane, Locke & Collins, 2003).

In this dissertation, I present two complementary studies that inquire about the

nature of entrepreneurial identities, and their relationships to entrepreneurial passion.

I also analyze the ties between entrepreneurial passion and the setting of proximal

goals. This research has three primary goals, specifically to demonstrate 1) that

entrepreneurial identities, and ideal entrepreneurial identities, exist, 2) that ideal

entrepreneurial identities are one source for entrepreneurial passion, and 3) that

entrepreneurial passion is related to proximal goal-setting.