Birds of a feather don’t always flock together: Identity management in entrepreneurship

Dean Shepherd; J. Michael Haynie

doi:10.4337/9781783479801.00028

Birds of a feather don’t always flock together: Identity management in entrepreneurship

Dean Shepherd, J. Michael Haynie

Veteran and Military Affairs

Research output: Chapter in Book/Entry/Poem › Chapter

Abstract

The act of entrepreneurship typically confers ‘distinctiveness’. However, in satisfying the psychological need to be distinct, entrepreneurs may at the same time foster a psychological deficit in feelings of belonging, leading to diminished psychological wellbeing. Investigating this potential trade-off through the lens of Optimal Distinctiveness Theory, we develop and model strategies appropriate for managing multiple identities, offering an explanation for why some entrepreneurs are able to balance distinctiveness and belonging, fostering psychological well-being, while others are unable to do so and experience entrepreneurship’s ‘dark-side’. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Original language	English (US)
Title of host publication	A Psychological Approach to Entrepreneurship
Subtitle of host publication	Selected Essays of Dean A. Shepherd
Publisher	Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd.
Pages	316-337
Number of pages	22
ISBN (Electronic)	9781783479801
ISBN (Print)	9781783479795
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.4337/9781783479801.00028
State	Published - Jan 1 2014

Keywords

Distinctiveness Theory
Entrepreneur
Entrepreneurial identity
Self-identity

ASJC Scopus subject areas

General Economics, Econometrics and Finance
General Business, Management and Accounting
General Psychology

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10.4337/9781783479801.00028

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Birds of a feather don’t always flock together: Identity management in entrepreneurship

Abstract

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

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