创业者网络能力与创业机会:网络位置和网络跨度的作用机制

Entrepreneurs' Network Capabilities and Entrepreneurial Opportunity:The Effect of Network Position and Network Range

在创业初期,创业者对创业资源和创业机会的获取都依赖于其社会关系网络。而社会关系网络的有效构建、发展和管理能力成为制约创业者获取创业成功的重要因素。本文提出创业者网络能力的概念,将其划分为三个维度:网络愿景、网络构建和网络管理。作为社会资本的重要来源,创业者网络能力通过不同的外部社会资本(网络位置、网络跨度)对创业机会识别和开发产生影响。研究结果表明:创业者网络能力对创业机会识别和开发均具有显著的正向作用;创业者网络能力与网络位置在作用于创业机会识别时,发挥替代作用;网络跨度在创业者网络能力与创业机会识别之间发挥了中介作用。

Social capital has been adequately confirmed to makeprofound effect on entrepreneurial firms from survival to success. Especially in the early phase of entrepreneurship, the access to entrepreneurial resources and opportunities to create are depended on entrepreneurs＇ social networks. As the first employee of the new firm, entrepreneur carries the task to discover and exploit the entre- preneurial opportunities. However, an obvious gap in the literature is why some people can find and apply the appropriate opportuni- ties while others do not. Draw on the capability view, we propose that the entrepreneurs＇ capabilities to establish, develop and manage the social networks become the significant factors to the success of entrepreneurship. This paper presents the concept of entrepreneurs＇ network capabilities, which refers to individuals＇ dynamic capabili- ties to identify the value of their networks and to develop, maintain and exploit network ties to get access to information and resources. We incorporate aspects of network visioning, network establishment and network management as three dimensions of network capabil- ities. Using a sample of 207 entrepreneurs, we find that entrepre- neurs＇ network capabilities have a significant and positive effect on entrepreneurial opportunity discovery and exploitation. Further, the relationship between network capabilities and opportunity discov- ery is negatively moderated by network position, which indicates the alternative role of network capabilities in a changeable network position. However, the negative interaction did not significantly influence opportunity exploitation. Last, our results reveal that the influences of entrepreneurs＇ network capabilities on entrepreneurial opportunity discovery and exploitation were mediated by network range. The study makes three main contributions： （1） we raise the conception of entrepreneurs＇ network capabilities and provide its three components, which allows a new perspective to explore en- trepreneurial initial behaviors from individual level; （2） identified entrepreneurs＇ network capabilities as an important source of social capital by testing the mediating role of network range, which re- sponded to Adler and Kwon （2002）＇s propose; （3） by incorporating the entrepreneurs＇ network capabilities and core social capital vari- ables, we find the substitution of network capabilities and position in achieving the opportunity discovery. The practical implications are also discussed.