Skip to main navigation menu Skip to main content Skip to site footer

Determining factors of international opportunity recognition: A conceptual approach

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15678/IER.2020.0604.05

Abstract

Objective: The objective of the article is to advance theoretical knowledge on international opportunity recognition by establishing a conceptual model with particular focus on answering why and how some entrepreneurs identify international opportunities (IOs).

Research Design & Methods: This conceptual paper relies on qualitative and explorative research through literature review methodology. The analysis of available literature leads to the formulation of seven theoretical propositions.

Findings: The findings allow us to establish why and how some entrepreneurs recognize IOs, by indicating that prior international knowledge and experience, international entrepreneurial alertness, entrepreneurial creativity and entrepreneurial passion are the determining factors.

Contribution & Value Added: This research integrates in a single conceptual model various factors that have been studied separately. The influence of all these factors simultaneously and the interaction between them seeks to explain why and how an entrepreneur identifies IOs.

Keywords

International opportunity recognition, prior international knowledge, prior international experience, cognitive characteristics, conceptual model

pdf

Author Biography

Eduardo Terán-Yépez

Research Technician and PhD Student at the University of Almeria (Spain). His research interests include international entrepreneurship, business internationalization, foreign trade, international marketing and sustainable entrepreneurship. He has published in journals such as Journal of Cleaner Production, Journal of International Entrepreneurship, and Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências. He has been a reviewer in journals such as PlosOne and Journal of Environmental Planning and Management.

Andrea Guerrero-Mora

Independent researcher. Master in Foreign Trade and Business Internationalization from the University of Cordoba (Spain) & Master in Business Economics and Management from the University of Almeria (Spain). Her research interests include entrepreneurship, international trade, managerial innovation and organizational innovation.


References

  1. Acedo, F.J., & Florin, J. (2006). An entrepreneurial cognition perspective on the internationalization of SMEs. Journal of International Entrepreneurship, 4(1), 49-67. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10843-006-0482-9
  2. Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179-211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-5978(91)90020-T
  3. Amabile, T.M. (1996). Creativity and innovation in organizations. Harvard Business School Press.
  4. Andersson, S., & Evers, N. (2015). International opportunity recognition in international new ven-tures—a dynamic managerial capabilities perspective. Journal of International Entrepreneur-ship, 13(3), 260-276. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10843-015-0149-5
  5. Angelsberger, M., Kraus, S., Mas-tur, A., & Rogi-Tierno, N. (2017). International opportunity recog-nition: An overview. Journal of Small Business Strategy, 27(1), 19-36.
  6. Ardichvili, A., Cardozo, R., & Ray, S. (2003). A theory of entrepreneurial opportunity identification and development. Journal of Business Venturing, 18(1), 105-123. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0883-9026(01)00068-4
  7. Bandura, A. (1986). Social foundations of thought and action. Englewood Cliffs, NJ.
  8. Baron, R.A. (2014). Thinking about cognition and its central role in entrepreneurship: confessions of a ‘reformed’ behaviourist. In R. Mitchell, R. K. Mitchell & B. Randolph-Seng (Eds.), Hand-book of Entrepreneurial Cognition (pp. 61-85). Edward Elgar Publishing.
  9. Baron, R.A., & Ward, T.B. (2004). Expanding Entrepreneurial Cognition’s Toolbox: Potential Contri-butions from the Field of Cognitive Science. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 28(6), 553-573. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2004.00064.x
  10. Berbel-Pineda, J.M., Palacios-Florencio, B., & Santos-Roldán, L. (2018). Foreign tourists as exter-nal-market information source for SMEs. Journal of Quality Assurance in Hospitality and Tour-ism, 19(3), 341-357. https://doi.org/10.1080/1528008X.2017.1418701
  11. Brazeal, D.V., & Herbert, T.T. (1999). The Genesis of Entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 23(3), 29-46. https://doi.org/10.1177/104225879902300303
  12. Butler, J.E., Doktor, R., & Lins, F.A. (2010). Linking international entrepreneurship to uncertainty, opportunity discovery, and cognition. Journal of International Entrepreneurship, 8(2), 121-134. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10843-010-0054-x
  13. Byun, C.-G., Sung, C., Park, J., & Choi, D. (2018). A Study on the Effectiveness of Entrepreneurship Education Programs in Higher Education Institutions: A Case Study of Korean Graduate Pro-grams. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, 4(3), 26. https://doi.org/10.3390/joitmc4030026
  14. Cardon, M.S., Gregoire, D.A., Stevens, C.E., & Patel, P.C. (2013). Measuring entrepreneurial pas-sion: Conceptual foundations and scale validation. Journal of Business Venturing, 28(3), 373-396. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2012.03.003
  15. Cardon, M.S., Glauser, M., & Murnieks, C.Y. (2017). Passion for what? Expanding the domains of entrepreneurial passion. Journal of Business Venturing Insights, 8, 24-32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbvi.2017.05.004
  16. Cardon, M.S., Wincent, J., Singh, J., & Drnovsek, M. (2009). The nature and experience of entrepre-neurial passion. Academy of Management Review, 34(3), 511-532. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMR.2009.40633190
  17. Casado-Belmonte, M. del P., Marín-Carrillo, G.M., Terán-Yépez, E., & Capobianco-Uriarte, M. de las M. (2020). What Is Going on with the Research into the Internationalization of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs)? An Intellectual Structure Analysis into the State-of-the-Art (1990-2018). Publications, 8(1), 11. https://doi.org/10.3390/publications8010011
  18. Chandra, Y., Styles, C., & Wilkinson, I. (2009). The recognition of first time international entrepre-neurial opportunities: Evidence from firms in knowledge-based industries. International Mar-keting Review, 26(1), 30-61. https://doi.org/10.1108/02651330910933195
  19. Chandra, Y., Styles, C., & Wilkinson, I.F. (2012). An Opportunity-Based View of Rapid International-ization. Journal of International Marketing, 20(1), 74-102. https://doi.org/10.1509/jim.10.0147
  20. Chang, Y.Y., & Chen, M.H. (2020). Creative entrepreneurs’ creativity, opportunity recognition, and career success: Is resource availability a double-edged sword? European Management Jour-nal. In press. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2020.03.004
  21. Chetty, S., Karami, M., & Martín, O.M. (2018). Opportunity Discovery and Creation as a Duality: Evidence from Small Firms’ Foreign Market Entries. Journal of International Marketing, 26(3), 70-93. https://doi.org/10.1509/jim.17.0005
  22. Corbett, A. C. (2005). Experiential Learning Within the Process of Opportunity Identification and Exploitation. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 29(4), 473-491. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2005.00094.x
  23. Corbett, A. C. (2007). Learning asymmetries and the discovery of entrepreneurial opportunities. Journal of Business Venturing, 22(1), 97-118. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2005.10.001
  24. Costa, S. F., Santos, S. C., Wach, D., & Caetano, A. (2018). Recognizing Opportunities across Cam-pus: The Effects of Cognitive Training and Entrepreneurial Passion on the Business Opportuni-ty Prototype. Journal of Small Business Management, 56(1), 51-75. https://doi.org/10.1111/jsbm.12348
  25. Ellis, P. D. (2011). Social ties and international entrepreneurship: Opportunities and constraints affecting firm internationalization. Journal of International Business Studies, 42(1), 99-127. https://doi.org/10.1057/jibs.2010.20
  26. Etemad, H. (2004). International Entrepreneurship as a Dynamic Adaptive System: Towards a Grounded Theory. Journal of International Entrepreneurship, 2(1/2), 5-59. https://doi.org/10.1023/b:jien.0000026905.90552.b5
  27. Fiet, J. O. (2007). A Prescriptive Analysis of Search and Discovery. Journal of Management Studies, 44(4), 592-611. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6486.2006.00671.x
  28. Firth, B. M., Chen, G., Kirkman, B.L., & Kim, K. (2014). Newcomers abroad: Expatriate adaptation during early phases of international assignments. Academy of Management Journal, 57(1), 280-300. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2011.0574
  29. Fust, A., Wustrow, P., & Fueglistaller, U. (2016). Entrepreneurial Information Search Behavior for Opportunity Recognition: Scale Development. Academy of Management Proceedings, 1, 17408. https://doi.org/10.5465/ambpp.2016.17408abstract
  30. Galdino, K.M., Rezende, S.F.L., & Lamont, B.T. (2019). Market and internationalization knowledge in entrepreneurial internationalization processes. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Be-haviour and Research, 25(7), 1580-1600. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-11-2018-0762
  31. George, M.N., Parida, V., Lahti, T., & Wincent, J. (2016). A systematic literature review of entre-preneurial opportunity recognition: insights on influencing factors. International Entrepreneur-ship and Management Journal, 12(2), 309-350. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11365-014-0347-y
  32. Gilad, B. (1984). Entrepreneurship: The Issue of Creativity in the Market Place. The Journal of Creative Behavior, 18(3), 151-161. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2162-6057.1984.tb00379.x
  33. Hajizadeh, A., & Zali, M. (2016). Prior knowledge, cognitive characteristics and opportunity recog-nition. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour and Research, 22(1), 63-83. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-05-2015-0110
  34. Holt, E.B., & Brown, H.C. (1931). Animal drive and the learning process, an essay toward radical empiricism. H. Holt and Co., NY.
  35. Kirzner, I.M. (1973). Competition and Entrepreneurship. University of Chicago Press.
  36. Kiss, A.N., Danis, W.M., Nair, S., & Suddaby, R. (2019). Accidental tourists? A cognitive exploration of serendipitous internationalisation. International Small Business Journal: Researching Entre-preneurship, 65(3), 1-25. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242619884032
  37. Kraus, S., Niemand, T., Angelsberger, M., Mas-Tur, A., & Roig-Tierno, N. (2017). Antecedents of International Opportunity Recognition in Born Global Firms. Journal of Promotion Manage-ment, 23(3), 386-406. https://doi.org/10.1080/10496491.2017.1294869
  38. Kruger, J., & Evans, M. (2004). If you don’t want to be late, enumerate: Unpacking reduces the planning fallacy. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 40(5), 586-598. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2003.11.001
  39. Lafuente, E., Vaillant, Y., Vendrell‐Herrero, F., & Gomes, E. (2019). Bouncing Back from Failure: Entrepreneurial Resilience and the Internationalisation of Subsequent Ventures Created by Serial Entrepreneurs. Applied Psychology, 68(4), 658-694. https://doi.org/10.1111/apps.12175
  40. Lorenz, M. P., Ramsey, J. R., & Richey, R. G. (2018). Expatriates’ international opportunity recogni-tion and innovativeness: The role of metacognitive and cognitive cultural intelligence. Journal of World Business, 53(2), 222-236. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jwb.2017.11.004
  41. Ma, C., Yang, J., Chen, L., You, X., Zhang, W., & Chen, Y. (2020). Entrepreneurs’ social networks and opportunity identification: Entrepreneurial passion and entrepreneurial alertness as modera-tors. Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, 48(2), 1-12. https://doi.org/10.2224/sbp.8659
  42. Mainela, T., Puhakka, V., & Servais, P. (2014). The Concept of International Opportunity in Interna-tional Entrepreneurship: A Review and a Research Agenda. International Journal of Manage-ment Reviews, 16(1), 105-129. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijmr.12011
  43. Mainela, T., Puhakka, V., & Sipola, S. (2018). International entrepreneurship beyond individuals and firms: On the systemic nature of international opportunities. Journal of Business Venturing, 33(4), 534-550. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2018.04.002
  44. Mitchell, R. K., Busenitz, L., Lant, T., McDougall, P. P., Morse, E. A., & Smith, J. B. (2002). Toward a Theory of Entrepreneurial Cognition: Rethinking the People Side of Entrepreneurship Re-search. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 27(2), 93-104. https://doi.org/10.1111/1540-8520.00001
  45. Oviatt, B. M., & McDougall, P. P. (2005). Defining international entrepreneurship and modeling the speed of internationalization. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 29(5), 537-553. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2005.00097.x
  46. Peiris, I. K., Akoorie, M. E. M., & Sinha, P. (2012). International entrepreneurship: A critical analysis of studies in the past two decades and future directions for research. Journal of International Entrepreneurship, 10(4), 279-324. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10843-012-0096-3
  47. Puhakka, V. (2011). Developing a Creative-Cognitive Model of Entrepreneurial Alertness to Busi-ness Opportunities. Journal of Management and Strategy, 2(4). https://doi.org/10.5430/jms.v2n4p85
  48. Rezvani, M., Lashgari, M., & Yadolahi Farsi, J. (2019). International entrepreneurial alertness in opportunity discovery for market entry. Journal of Research in Marketing and Entrepreneur-ship, 21(2), 76-102. https://doi.org/10.1108/JRME-01-2018-0003
  49. Sánchez, J. C., Carballo, T., & Gutiérrez, A. (2011). The entrepreneur from a cognitive approach. Psicothema, 23(3), 433-438.
  50. Santos-Álvarez, V., & García-Merino, T. (2010). The role of the entrepreneur in identifying interna-tional expansion as a strategic opportunity. International Journal of Information Management, 30(6), 512-520. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2010.03.008
  51. Sassetti, S., Marzi, G., Cavaliere, V., & Ciappei, C. (2018). Entrepreneurial cognition and socially situated approach: a systematic and bibliometric analysis. Scientometrics, 116(3), 1675-1718. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-018-2809-4
  52. Shahab, Y., Chengang, Y., Arbizu, A.D., & Haider, M.J. (2019). Entrepreneurial self-efficacy and intention: do entrepreneurial creativity and education matter? International Journal of Entre-preneurial Behaviour and Research, 25(2), 259-280. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-12-2017-0522
  53. Shane, S., Locke, E.A., & Collins, C.J. (2003). Entrepreneurial motivation. Human Resource Man-agement Review, 13(2), 257-279. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1053-4822(03)00017-2
  54. Shane, S., & Nicolaou, N. (2015). Creative personality, opportunity recognition and the tendency to start businesses: A study of their genetic predispositions. Journal of Business Venturing, 30(3), 407-419. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2014.04.001
  55. Shane, S., & Venkataraman, S. (2000). The promise of entrepreneurship as a field of research. Academy of Management Review, 25(1), 217-226. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMR.2000.2791611
  56. Shepherd, D.A., & DeTienne, D.R. (2005). Prior Knowledge, Potential Financial Reward, and Oppor-tunity Identification. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 29(1), 91-112. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2005.00071.x
  57. Smilor, R.W. (1997). Entrepreneurship: Reflections on a subversive activity. Journal of Business Venturing, 12(5), 341-346. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0883-9026(97)00008-6
  58. Tabares, A., Chandra, Y., Alvarez, C., & Escobar-Sierra, M. (2020). Opportunity-related behaviors in international entrepreneurship research: a multilevel analysis of antecedents, processes, and outcomes. International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal. In press. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11365-020-00636-3
  59. Tang, J., Kacmar, K.M.M., & Busenitz, L. (2012). Entrepreneurial alertness in the pursuit of new opportunities. Journal of Business Venturing, 27(1), 77-94. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2010.07.001
  60. Tang, J., & Murphy, P. J. (2012). Prior knowledge and new product and service introductions by entrepreneurial firms: the mediating role of technological innovation. Journal of Small Busi-ness Management, 50(1), 41-62. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-627X.2011.00343.x
  61. Terán-Yépez, E. (2020). Key Antecedents of International Opportunity Identification. In 21st Inter-national Conference on Social Sciences (p. 272). Amsterdam: European Center For Science Ed-ucation And Research.
  62. Terán-Yépez, E., Jiménez-Castillo, D. & Sánchez-Pérez, M. (2020a). International opportunity recognition: A comprehensive bibliometric review. Journal of International Entrepreneurship. In press. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10843-020-00276-2
  63. Terán-Yépez, E., Santos-Roldán, L., Palacios-Florencio, B., & Manuel Berbel-Pineda, J. (2020b). Foreign market selection process as tool for international expansion: Case study for ecuadori-an chia seeds exports to the European Union. Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências, 92(1), 20190513. https://doi.org/10.1590/0001-3765202020190513
  64. Tognazzo, A., Sassetti, S., Caputo, A., & Pellegrini, M.M. (2020). Editorial special issue entrepre-neurial decision-making and behavior. Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship, 32(1), 1-7.https://doi.org/10.1080/08276331.2019.1613802
  65. Tuomisalo, T. (2019). Emergence of an entrepreneurial opportunity: A case within a Finnish tele-communication international new venture. Journal of International Entrepreneurship, 17(3), 334-354. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10843-019-00247-2
  66. Urban, B., & Wood, E. (2015). The importance of opportunity recognition behaviour and motivators of employees when engaged in corporate entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 16(5), 980-994. https://doi.org/10.3846/16111699.2013.799087
  67. Venkataraman, S. (1997). The distinctive domain of entrepreneurship research: An editor’s per-spective. In J. Katz & R. Brockhaus (Eds.), Advances in Entrepreneurship, Firm Emergence and Growth (pp. 119-138). JAI Press Vickers.
  68. Woodman, R.W., & Schoenfeldt, L.F. (1990). An Interactionist Model of Creative Behavior. The Journal of Creative Behavior, 24(4), 279-290. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2162-6057.1990.tb00549.x
  69. Zahra, S. A., Korri, J. S., & Yu, J. F. (2005). Cognition and international entrepreneurship: Implica-tions for research on international opportunity recognition and exploitation. International Business Review, 14(2), 129-146. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ibusrev.2004.04.005
  70. Zahra, S.A., & George, G. (2002). International entrepreneurship: The current status of the field and future research agenda. In M. Hitt, D. Ireland, D. Sexton, & M. Camp (Eds.), Strategic En-trepreneurship: Creating a New Mindset (pp.255-288).Blackwell.
  71. Zucchella, A., & Magnani, G. (2016). International entrepreneurship: theoretical foundations and practices. Palgrave Macmillan, NY.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Similar Articles

1-10 of 187

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.