Is More Always Better? Re-Assessing the Role of Human Capital in Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship research mainly focused on linear effects of human capital on venture performance, while recent publications have pointed towards non-linear effects. We investigate non-linear effects of both general and specific human capital on nascent venture performance. Based on data from PSED II, we study U-shaped relationships between general education, management, industry, and startup experience and nascent venture progress. We find that while general education, management experience, and startup experience have an inverse U-shaped relationship, industry experience has a U-shaped relationship with venture progress. Our findings have implications for theory and practice.