Being Smart Is Not Enough: Personality Traits and Vocational Interests Incrementally Predict Intention, Status and Success of Leaders and Entrepreneurs Beyond Cognitive Ability

Abstract

Three separate studies demonstrate that socio-emotional skills add incremental validity beyond cognitive ability when predicting leadership and entrepreneurship intention, emergence as well as success. Study 1 uses a longitudinal approach and tests the cognitive ability and vocational interests of 231 students to predict their leadership and entrepreneurship intention. It demonstrates that cognitive ability predicts their intention to become a business leader or entrepreneur 2 years in the future. Importantly, the vocational interests "enterprising" and "social" increase this ability-driven prediction of leadership and entrepreneurship intention (R 2 Lead.Intent. = 15%, R 2 Entre.Intent. = 9%). Study 2 investigates 123 business leaders and shows that those with higher cognitive ability more likely emerge as top-level leaders, receive more income and get slightly better supervisor-ratings on their performance. The leaders' Big Five traits (openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, emotional stability) added validity beyond cognitive ability when predicting these criteria (R 2 Income = 9%, R 2 Lead.Level = 8%, R 2 Perform. = 15%). Finally, Study 3 includes 155 participants and demonstrates that cognitive ability predicts a person's entrepreneurial status but not performance. Additionally, considering the Big Five traits improves the prediction of who becomes an entrepreneur and successfully performs as such (R 2 Status = 7%, R 2 Perform. = 18%). Importantly, selected Big Five traits and vocational interests boost the importance of cognitive ability in the field of leadership and entrepreneurship. Concluding, this series of studies suggests that it is the combination of personality traits or interests with cognitive ability which is most powerful when predicting leadership and entrepreneurship intention, emergence and success.

The why and the how: A nexus on how opportunity, risk and personality affect entrepreneurial intention

“…This rationale is based on three aspects. First, research shows that entrepreneurial intention is better predicted by a more rather than less inclusive bundle of person-oriented antecedents (e.g., Bergner, 2020;B. Fuller et al, 2018;Kruse et al, 2020;Palmer et al, 2021).…”

To Score or Not to Score? A Simulation Study on the Performance of Test Scores, Plausible Values, and SEM, in Regression With Socio-Emotional Skill or Personality Scales as Predictors

“…The error variance that tarnishes test scores is likely to lead to attenuation bias when using them as predictors in multiple regression (Fuller, 2006;Schofield, 2015;Braun and von Davier, 2017;Lechner et al, 2021)-a scenario that is ubiquitous in current studies (e.g., Roberts et al, 2007;Bergner, 2020;Harzer, 2020;Wagner et al, 2020). Moreover, it may lead to false positive or false negative conclusions about incremental validity (e.g., Westfall and Yarkoni, 2016;Sengewald et al, 2018).…”

“…Pertinent studies often examine socio-emotional skills as predictors of outcomes such as school achievement, career success, participation in further education, or health (e.g., Roberts et al, 2007;Lechner et al, 2017;Rammstedt et al, 2017;Laible et al, 2020). Moreover, akin to many other research areas (Aiken and West, 1991;Westfall and Yarkoni, 2016;Sengewald et al, 2018), it is routinely of importance to examine whether socio-emotional skills incrementally predict an outcome above and beyond covariates such as cognitive skills, socioeconomic status, or other established predictors of that outcome (e.g., Roberts et al, 2007;Rammstedt et al, 2017;Bergner, 2020;Harzer, 2020;Wagner et al, 2020). That is, such studies are intent on demonstrating the (incremental) predictive validity of socio-emotional skills for consequential life outcomes, which is then taken as evidence for the relevance of socioemotional skills.…”

Shadow of Your Former Self: Exploring Project Leaders’ Post-Failure Behaviors (Resilience, Self-Esteem and Self-Efficacy) in High-Tech Startup Projects

“…Some studies have considered resilience [32] and self-efficacy as a reflection of leadership capabilities [33] and well-being [34], but have not considered the opportunities to learn from failures [35], especially in projects [35][36][37]. Other studies have considered the mediating roles of resilience, well-being and self-esteem, but at the organisational level rather than the project leader's level [38].…”