Linking personal turbulence and creative behavior: The influence of scanning and search in the entrepreneurial process

摘要

Drawing on image theory and integrating literatures on shocks to the system and displacement, we propose that personal turbulence (i.e., rapid, unusual, agenda-setting events) enhances entrepreneurs' creativity both directly and through the mechanism of scanning and search. We conduct multiple studies to develop and validate a scale for personal turbulence and to test hypotheses. Results from the main study of 108 entrepreneurs suggest that negative turbulence has a more potent influence on creativity than does positive turbulence. Further, scanning and search partially mediates the relationship between negative turbulence and creativity, and fully mediates the effect of positive turbulence on creativity. (C) 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.