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This study aims to thoroughly investigate how the different dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) influence firm performance in the Iranian knowledge-based industry. An empirical analysis of data from 155 Iranian knowledge-based firms was performed by employing the PLS method of structural equation modelling. Findings show that there is semantic redundancy among the different dimensions of EO. Specifically, just two of the five dimensions, proactiveness and risk-taking, could account for all the effects of EO on firm performance in the context of the Iranian knowledge-based industry. In addition, moderation, spuriousness, suppression of industrial contingencies and control variables were not at play. From a theoretical point of view, our work confirms that scholars should avoid considering EO as a holistic gestalt in different contexts. It also highlights that proactiveness and risk-taking are the orientations with the strongest effects on performance in Iranian knowledge-based firms. From an empirical point of view, our study sheds light on the importance of these two specific EO dimensions in the selection of human resources and in the development of policies aimed at fostering sustainability of knowledge-based firms. In addition, it represents a contribution to understanding how EO dimensions work in emerging countries, characterised by social and economic systems different from those of the Western world.

PurposeEntrepreneurship, in many low-resilient economies, plays a critical role in overcoming external shocks. Thus, it is crucial in such situation that entrepreneurial firms can survive and even grow so that the whole economy can benefit from a higher level of resilience. The purpose of this study is to understand how entrepreneurial orientation (EO) brings about firms' performance through the moderating role of CEOs' self-transcendence values in the context of a low-resilient sanctioned economy.Design/methodology/approachThis is a quantitative research that employs hierarchical regression analysis of a sample of 114 Iranian entrepreneurial firms composed of 62 knowledge-based and 52 creative firms.FindingsThe analysis revealed that in the low-resilient sanctioned economy, Iran, EO-performance link is moderated by the level of CEOs' self-transcendence value, that is, higher level of CEO self-transcendence leads to stronger impact of EO on performance. This moderation is not different in creative sector vs. knowledge-based sector of the economy.Originality/valueThis paper addresses a major gap in the traditional EO-performance relationship which is related to the role of CEO values. Also, the context of Iran's low level of economic resilience adds more novelty to this study, emphasizing on the role of CEO personal values of self-transcendence in times of crisis. The results could also be generalized in many economies now facing the COVID-19 pandemic crisis during which CEOs' self-transcendence values are vitally important in overcoming the difficulties of doing business in such situation.

Background:Regarding the importance of health care providers such as nurses who are always in stressful environments, it is imperative to better understand how they become more engaged in their work. The purpose of this paper is to focus on health care providers (nurses), and examine how the interaction between spiritual intelligence and psychological empowerment affect job engagement.Materials and Methods:This descriptive and quantitative study was conducted among nurses at the Faghihi Hospital in Shiraz, Iran in 2010. A sample of nurses (n = 179) completed standard survey questionnaire including spiritual intelligence, psychological empowerment, and job engagement which included 5 questions for each dimensions. For testing the hypotheses of the study, results were analyzed through structural equation modeling (SEM) using LISREL 8.8.Results:SEM revealed that psychological empowerment could fully mediate the relationship between spiritual intelligence and job engagement. However, the correlation between spiritual intelligence and job engagement was significant but weak using Pearson coefficient method. This can imply that psychological empowerment plays a crucial role in the relationship between spiritual intelligence and job engagement.Conclusions:This paper indicates that spiritual intelligence might affect different organizational parameters, directly or indirectly. Therefore, it is recommended that the researchers evaluate probable relationships between spiritual intelligence and other variables.

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