The prevalence and co-occurrence of psychiatric conditions among entrepreneurs and their families

Abstract

Psychiatric conditions and sub-threshold psychiatric temperaments may influence entrepreneurs' affect, cognition, energy, motivation, circadian rhythms, activity levels, self-concept, creativity, and interpersonal behaviors in ways that influence business outcomes. We used a self-report survey to examine the prevalence and co-occurrence of five psychiatric conditions among 242 entrepreneurs and 93 comparison participants. Mental health differences directly or indirectly affected 72% of the entrepreneurs in this sample, including those with a personal mental health history (49%) and family mental health history among the asymptomatic entrepreneurs (23%). Entrepreneurs reported experiencing more depression (30%), ADHD (29%), substance use (12%), and bipolar disorder (11%) than comparison participants. Furthermore, 32% of the entrepreneurs reported having two or more mental health conditions, while 18% reported having three or more mental health conditions. Asymptomatic entrepreneurs (having no mental health issues) with asymptomatic families constituted only 24% of the entrepreneur participants. Entrepreneurs' psychiatric issues can affect their functioning and that of their ventures. Therefore, integrating knowledge about psychiatric conditions with research on personality traits can broaden the understanding of how mental healthrelated traits, states, and family history can influence entrepreneurial outcomes. We discuss methodological limitations as well as implications of our findings for entrepreneurship research and practice.

ADHD symptoms, entrepreneurial passion, and entrepreneurial performance

“…In our sample, 20.7% (n = 34) out of 164 respondents may be diagnosed with ADHD. This is comparable to a general ADHD entrepreneur prevalence rate of 29% (Freeman et al 2019).…”

“…The present work offers several contributions. It enriches the emergent scholarly interest in the link between mental health conditions and entrepreneurship (e.g., Wiklund et al 2018) by focusing on a common condition that affects millions of adults worldwide (de Graaf et al 2008) and that may be over-represented among entrepreneurs (Freeman et al 2019). With the overarching aim of expanding knowledge about the link between ADHD symptoms and entrepreneurship, we add to this research (albeit at the subclinical level, i.e., not manifesting in the level of a diagnosable clinical disorder) by examining the performance outcomes of ADHD symptoms.…”

El lado positivo del emprendedor universitario. Autoestima, satisfacción con la vida y optimismo en estudiantes de México y Bolivia

“…Por otro lado, la presente investigación se fundamenta en dos premisas básicas: 1) los rasgos de la personalidad y ciertos aspectos propios del sujeto pueden afectar a la intención emprendedora (Zhao et al, 2010;López-Núñez et al, 2020); 2); existe una controversia teórica al explicar los atributos del emprendedor, pues destacan quienes ponen énfasis en sus atributos positivos (Adomako et al, 2016;Arora et al, 2013;Laguna, 2013;Trevelyan, 2008;Hessels et al, 2018), y otros que se centran en los negativos (Akhtar et al, 2013;Freeman et al, 2019). De tal manera, atendiendo a la psicología positiva, la cual se centra en las fortalezas de los individuos (Seligman y Pawelski, 2003), ¿es posible que variables de la psicología positiva como la autoestima, satisfacción con la vida y el optimismo puedan explicar a la intención emprendedora?…”

“…La primera hace énfasis en las posibles debilidades de la personalidad de quien inicia una empresa. En este sentido, autores reportan que el emprendedor puede presentar rasgos de psicopatología (Akhtar et al, 2013); mientras que, por otro lado, Freeman et al (2019) encontraron que los emprendedores muestran diversos problemas que le afectan de manera negativa a su nivel de bienestar, tales como la depresión, trastorno de déficit de atención y abuso de sustancias.…”

Academic Stress, Risk Taking Propensity and Internal Locus of Control in Mexican and Bolivian University Entrepreneurs

“…This may be because researchers have tried to understand the entrepreneur from two basic perspectives. On the one hand, the first perspective is based on their behavior, that is, what the entrepreneur does (e.g., Gartner, 1988;Venkataraman, 1997;Schumpeter, 2003); while, on the other hand, there is the posture that focuses on his personality (e.g., McClelland, 1961;Viinikainen, et al, 2017;López-Núñez et al, 2020;Freeman et al, 2019).…”