RESPONSIBLE ENTREPRENEURSHIP VISION DEVELOPMENT AND ETHICS

14 RESPONSIBLE ENTREPRENEURSHIP
to examine the factors that motivate people to become entrepreneurs as well as how they can
operate their company successfully. It analyzes the personal characteristics of businessmen,
how they react in conditions of calm and psychological pressure, and how they act as they
materialize projects. It explains how these people make decisions in the face of challenges
they receive from the broader economic and business environment and how they are motivated
for business activity.
Theoretical approaches to entrepreneurship
Research on entrepreneurship started a long while ago, but systematic approaches started
in 1934 when Shumpeter presented his views on entrepreneurship and innovation. Initially
researchers focused on the personal traits of businessmen, while later they were more concerned
with the environment in which a person operates as well as the demographic and social
characteristics of entrepreneurs (Begley & Boyrd, 1987; Brockhaus, 1980; Sexton & Bowman,
1984). There have been research attempts that aimed to answer the questions of if a
businessman is born or develops in the environment in which he or she operates (Baron, 2004;
Bonnett & Furnham, 1991). Significant theories and approaches developed as a result, of which
the most important are the following:
a) personality theories (Bucholz & Rosenthal, 2005; Korunka, Frank, Lueger, & Mugler,
2003): They maintain that some people’s business activities (unlike others’) can be ascribed
to their personality traits.
b) behavioural theories (Bridge, O‘Neill & Cromie, 2003): They study entrepreneurship
on the basis of the environment in which a person is active and support that this person’s
behaviour should be examined within the context of this environment.
c) economic approaches (Carolis, Marie & Saparito, 2006): They focus on the envi ron -
mental factors that influence entrepreneurship and support that the external environment is
that which can motivate or discourage people from assuming business initiatives.
d) sociological approaches (Reynolds, Camp, Bygrave, Autio & Hay, 2001): These were
developed by sociologists and maintain that the choices people make concerning their professional
occupation are mainly dictated by the social environment.
e) the cognitive approach (Delmar, 2000): This approach is supported by researchers who
admit that personal traits play an important role in who will be an entrepreneur and who will
not, but also propose further investigation of the decision-making process, before the initiation
of business activity.
Despite extensive scientific research, researchers have not arrived at any commonly
accepted conclusions that could become development tools for the business world. The following
questions remain relevant to us today: “What are the reasons why some people are
motivated to start their own businesses while others are not despite identical environmental
conditions? And how can they operate their business successfully?” The purpose of the present
study is to answer these interesting and perennial questions, basing our research on the
Tri-Anthropo-Type Paschalidis Business Model.