Exploring the affect heuristic in Iranian women entrepreneurs

Abstract

PurposeHeuristics are fundamental components of the bounded rationality paradigm and influence entrepreneurs' decisions profusely. On the other hand, the affect heuristic is one of the most important heuristics. The body of knowledge on entrepreneurial heuristics is scattered on the whole and very superficial concerning women entrepreneurs, given that most studies have considered women and men entrepreneurs similar in showing heuristics. The dearth of research is more evident in the context of developing countries. Thus, to fill part of the existing research gaps, this study explores the affect heuristic in Iranian women entrepreneurs.Design/methodology/approachThis paper's data were gathered by conducting face-to-face interviews with 17 novice Iranian women entrepreneurs active in biotechnology, nanotechnology, advanced medicine, aerospace, textile and food sectors and analyzed through a thematic–narrative analysis.FindingsAccording to the results, the main outcomes of the affect heuristic in Iranian women entrepreneurs are delaying the final decision (including an obsession with collecting too much information, overemphasizing the role of negative information and seeking external advice before making a decision), rash decisions (including evaluations based on satisfying decision strategies, too much enthusiasm about one's venture, as well as an optimistic assessment of different scenarios) and serious consideration of quitting (including too much disappointment and anger over discrimination).Practical implicationsBased on this paper's findings, novice women entrepreneurs should be heedful of their fear, which could not only delay their decisions but also paralyze their capability of decision-making. Furthermore, while under circumstances such as information overload and uncertainty, positive feelings like optimism and happiness could be very instrumental by enabling entrepreneurs to shorten the process of their decisions, women entrepreneurs should be very careful about the possible biases resulting from their positive affect.Originality/valueThis study is a pioneer in two respects. First, it explores women entrepreneurs' decision-making heuristics, which is often a neglected area of research. Second, coming to the conclusion that most of the research on women entrepreneurs has been conducted in the Western context, this paper focuses on the context of developing countries by targeting Iranian women entrepreneurs.

Does Financial Mindfulness Make a Difference? A Nexus of Financial Literacy and Behavioural Biases in Women Entrepreneurs

“…Specifically, investors believe that obsolete information or methods will assist them in leading (Kumar & Goyal, 2016). Women are better at relational reasoning than absolute reasoning, while men are better at relational reasoning than women (Nouri, 2021). As a consequence, we are prone to making decisions or making forecasts based on 'known starting points' and making decisions based on or adjusting estimations towards the starting point.…”

Decision-making biases in women entrepreneurs: the novices vs the habitual

“…Thus, given the growing importance of women's entrepreneurship (Hughes et al, 2012), the operational implications of biases for entrepreneurs (Cossette, 2014), especially for women entrepreneurs who encounter a unique set of challenges in their business activities (Weidhaas, 2018), this lack of proper studies has created an important research gap in the field of women entrepreneurship. This shortcoming is more underlined concerning women entrepreneurs in developing countries like Iran, who encounter various impediments in their entrepreneurial activities (Nouri, 2021b). Thus, exploring Iranian women entrepreneurs' decision-making biases is vital to not only improve their decision-making but also prevent them from wasting valuable resources.…”

Empreendedorismo e afeto: desafios e perspectivas de pesquisa

“…Sobre as produções que empregaram uma abordagem quantitativa, os métodos mais utilizados foram o uso de survey (por exemplo, Arora et al, 2013;Cardon & Kirk, 2015;Davis et al, 2017;Delgado-García et al, 2012;Nikolaev et al, 2020) e questionário (por exemplo, Bernoster et al, 2020;Laguna et al, 2016;Pérez-Fernández,et al, 2020a, 2020bYang et al, 2019). Dentre as pesquisas que utilizam métodos qualitativos, houve uma predominância do uso de entrevistas (por exemplo, Barzotto, 2019;Cockayne, 2016;Nassif et al, 2004;Vidigal & Nassif, 2013), estudo de caso (Ahsan, Zheng, DeNoble, & Musteen, 2018;Biniari, 2012;Lascaux & Kolesnikova, 2021), etnografia (Gerrard, 2019;Katila, Laine, & Parkkari, 2019), estratégia narrativa (Nouri, 2021) e diário (Ilonen & Heinonen, 2018). Seis pesquisas fizeram uso de uma metodologia mista (Chen et al, 2009;Gondim & Mutti, 2011;Kurczewska, Kyrö, Lagus, Kohonen, & Lindh-Knuutila, 2018;Lackéus, 2014;Lechat & Torrès, 2016;Stroe, Sirén, Shepherd, & Wincent, 2020).…”

“…A concepção psicobiológica do afeto se concentra no estudo do afeto por meio das teorias vinculadas à psicologia, biologia e a neurociência (Asma & Gabriel, 2019;Barrett et al, 2007;Damasio, 2003;Wetherell, 2012). Nas pesquisas analisadas, o afeto pode ser considerado um rótulo geral ou termo guarda-chuva, que abrange uma gama de sentimentos e engloba o afeto central, a emoção e o humor (Barzotto, 2019;Cortez et al, 2016;Dashtipour & Rumens, 2018;García et al, 2015;Gerrard, 2019;Hayton & Cholakova, 2012;Ilonen & Heinonen, 2018;Keller & Kozlinska, 2019;Kurczewska et al, 2018;Nassif, 2014;Nouri, 2021;Vidigal & Nassif, 2013). O afeto também pode ser concebido como uma infraestrutura do desejo ou estruturação do sentimento, produzida e que circula no local de trabalho (Cockayne, 2016).…”

“…Na concepção econômica do empreendedorismo, as discussões ocorrem em torno de uma orientação mais tradicional, direcionada ao lucro por meio da criação e desenvolvimento de negócios, novos produtos e serviços. O empreendedorismo está associado ao processo de criação de novos empreendimentos (Ahsan et al, 2018;Baron, 2008;Cardon et al, 2017;Cockayne, 2016;Davis et al, 2017;Nouri, 2021;Sweida & Sherman, 2020), dentro de um ciclo que vai desde a concepção ao desenvolvimento dos negócios (Barzotto, 2019;Cortez, 2016;Cortez et al, 2016;Mielniczuk & Laguna, 2020;Nassif et al, 2010;Vidigal & Nassif, 2013), incluindo a identificação de novas soluções que poderão ser convertidas em novos produtos ou serviços, por meio da criatividade do empreendedor (Perry--Smith & Coff, 2011). O processo de falência dos negócios e a decisão do empreendedor em encerrar seu empreendimento (He et al, 2018;Stroe et al, 2020) também foram discutidos.…”