Resource constraints and firm innovation:When less is more?

This paper explores the relationship between resource constraints and innovation of new firms.Drawing upon the relevant literature,we incorporate resource constraints as the antecedent to the bricolage-innovation link.Compared to prior studies that treated resource constraints as a one-dimensional variable,we operationalize it along two dimensions:knowledge constraints and financial constraints.Our argument posits that knowledge constraints and financial constraints act as catalysts for innovation in new firms,with bricolage serving as a mediating role.To test our hypotheses,we conducted a survey involving 183 entrepreneurs in the United States.The data analysis demonstrates that bricolage fully mediates the relationship between knowledge con‐straints and innovation and partially mediates the relationship between financial constraints and innovation.Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.