How do Successful Entrepreneurs Really Learn? An Empirical Study on Entrepreneurs’ Self-Regulated Learning Capabilities

To date, entrepreneurial learning mechanisms have been investigated by experiential learning research, which argues that entrepreneurs learn by transforming experiences into knowledge. However, different studies show that practical experience does not necessarily lead to excellence in performance. Some entrepreneurs repeatedly fail to learn from their experience, making the same mistakes over and over again. Experience may even lead to bad decision making and inadequate usage of information. This suggests that successful entrepreneurs have the skill to learn from their experiences in productive ways and avoid the potentially detrimental effects of relying on experience. Self-regulated learning theory provides a conceptual frame for explaining and investigating the differences between successful and less successful entrepreneurial learners. It explains why and how successful entrepreneurs regulate how and what they learn. We intend to empirically investigate the relationship between entrepreneurs’ capabilities to regulate their own learning processes during the venture development process. In a first step we therefore develop an empirical instrument measuring the level of self-regulated entrepreneurial learning (SREL). In a follow-up study (which will be proposed to the SNF), the data gathered via this instrument will be linked to data on venture success obtained by a multi-measure design.