Exploring the Factors that Contribute to Psychological Wellbeing in Successful Entrepreneurs

Abstract

Introduction: From a dynamic viewpoint, this study discusses the early phases of the entrepreneurial process that impact student entrepreneurs' psychological well-being. Entrepreneurship provides the chance to throw light on new attempts and maintain psychological well-being to keep entrepreneurial development, despite challenges along the way.

Objectives: The primary aim of this study is to understand the different facets of the entrepreneurial process, namely Entrepreneurial Desire (ED), Entrepreneurial Carefulness (EC), Entrepreneurial Purpose (EP), and Entrepreneurial Behavior (EB), and their impacts on student entrepreneurs' psychological well-being. This research is particularly focused on the entrepreneurial journey.

Methods: We built a framework to analyze the link between these facets of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurs' psychological well-being. This was accomplished using data collected from 1798 student entrepreneurs across 41 universities.

Results: Our analysis revealed that Entrepreneurial Desire (ED), Entrepreneurial Carefulness (EC), and Entrepreneurial Purpose (EP) have a positive link with entrepreneurs' psychological well-being (PWB). Interestingly, we found that entrepreneurial behavior (EB) had an opposite effect, negatively impacting psychological well-being.

Conclusions: The research provides valuable insights into students' psychological well-being during their entrepreneurial journey, especially amidst the challenges posed by the COVID-19 situation. It underlines the importance of certain aspects of the entrepreneurial process that contribute positively to psychological well-being, while also highlighting areas (like entrepreneurial behavior) that might cause stress or negatively affect well-being. The findings also pave the way for alleviating the pressures of entrepreneurship by focusing on the right elements of the entrepreneurial process.