Renewing the hunt for the Heffalump: Identifying potential entrepreneurs by personality characteristics

The search for a way to identify potential entrepreneurs, or individuals willing to assume the risks of organizing and managing businesses in return for a profit, has been undertaken by a National Science Foundation study at the University of Oregon. Many parameters of entrepreneurship were studied and measured by using hypothesized factors and variables cited in previous studies, such as the need for achievement and locus of control. Seven scales were developed regarding personality inventory: 1. interest in money and fame, 2. tendency to give socially desirable responses, 3. entrepreneurship, 4. internal locus of control, 5. likelihood to take risk, 6. creativity, and 7. the need to achieve. These scales were used to test 41 items on a personality inventory administered to 307 respondents, in order to gauge their likelihood to start a business.Function task preferences and personality constructs were found to be most important in identifying entrepreneurs. The Need for Achievement and Internal Locus of Control Scales were not found to be significant in this study as they had been in past studies to identify entrepreneurs. The risk and creativity scales were better indicators of individuals most likely to start their own businesses.