The Experiential Essence of Entrepreneurial Cognition: How Understanding Entrepreneurial Thinking Enhances Teaching & Practice Norris Krueger, PhD – Entrepreneurship Northwest July 2012
Jan 12, 2015
The Experiential Essence of Entrepreneurial Cognition:
How Understanding Entrepreneurial Thinking
Enhances Teaching & Practice
Norris Krueger, PhD –
Entrepreneurship Northwest
July 2012
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exmwSxv7XJI
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See a difference/
We know how to teach individuals (and organizations and communities)
to think more entrepreneurially, to truly make a difference; we now
understand why and how.
Overview
Important new theory & evidence Replicable models of entrepreneurial
learning Antecedents & consequences of
entrepreneurial learning Implications for teaching, practice,
public policy
Important new theory & evidence
Critical review: entrepreneurial cognition entrepreneurial learning
processes
Exciting new multi-disciplinary opportunities e.g. neuro-entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurial Thinking: A primer?
Intentions: From intent to “informed” intent?
Basic model:
Entrepreneurial Intentions
Perceived Social Norms
Personal Desirability
Perceived Self-Efficacy
Perceived Collective Efficacy
Perceived Desirability
Perceived Feasibility
INTENTIONS
Precipitating Event
PERCEPTION of OPPORTUNITY
Action
Entrepreneurial Learning: from Novice to Expert!
Knowledge Content? or Structure?
Perceived Barriers? Pattern recognition?
Deep Beliefs (role identity?) Importance of understanding
entrepreneurial emotion
Understanding cognitive change...
Two Ways to Learn
Behavioristic- fill the bucket
-define the buckets
Constructivistic- light the fire (or fan it!)
- assume knowledge structures evolve(often discontinuously)
Novice ExpertEntrepreneurial
Mindset
Critical Developmental Experiences
Change in what we know (content)
Change in how we know it (knowledge structures)
Change in Deep Beliefs
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Key Mechanisms
What truly induces transformative learning?
Key developmental experiences?
What do entrepreneurship classes actually do?
HOW do we support? (ecosystem?)
Transformative Learning
• There is excellent theory to support– Constructivism– Mental prototyping, role identity– Cognitive developmental psych– Cognitive & social neuroscience
• There is excellent empirical evidence– Even in entrepreneurial settings! – Changes in key mental prototypes• And a lot more data about to be released• 2011: ISEEO, GUESSS; 2012: Neergaard
Keys to Transformative Learning
• “Book Throwing”– Constructivist versus Behaviorist– Entrep educators have always been
constructivistic (cue Voltaire)• Neuro-entrepreneurship?*
– Neuroplasticity– Emotions– Deep beliefs (Neo, take the...)
• Centrality of Action * if curious http://www.slideshare.net/norriskrueger/icsb-
2010-neuroentrepreneurship
Accelerating Learning
• Problem-Based Learning (“authentic” questions)
• Two overlapping themes:• IMMERSION – Action before thinking• MENTORING – Learn the right lessons
– Expert mentors– Peer mentors
– Or THREE? Ecosystem that supports all of this?
– Social infrastructure; cognitive infrastructure– http://bit/ly/EcoSys
So what IS this “entrepreneurial mindset” anyway??
• Thoughts? Which are the hardest to change? – (More important for here... what can we measure?)
Seeing opportunities• Seeing self as entrepreneur (role identity)• Strategic thinking• Dot-connecting / pattern recognition• Effectual thinking (bricolage, improv)• Optimist (attributional)• Metacognition• Counterfactual thinking• Bias for action (vs. FoF!)• Value creation as sine qua non (Market-pull?)
Replicable models of entrepreneurial learning
Key entrepreneurial training methods maximize entrepreneurial learning deep, transformative learning
Existing practices that demonstrably grow entrepreneurial thinking
Concrete examples: program level course level
Existing Best Practices
that demonstrably grow entrepreneurial thinking... Action learning
e.g., Living cases Problem-based learning Counterfactual thinking Explicit script building Active reflection (collaborative)
But….
Not just universities
It is the entire ecosystem
Follow the entrepreneurs
Help them!
Immersion/Mentoring
Chalmers/Gothenburg NU Singapore The Foundry (Utah) http://business.utah.edu/node/1203/ TechStars (www.techstars.org) Startup Weekend
www.startupweekend.org Lean Startup
http://www.slideshare.net/sblank/successful-entrepreneurship-1
Critical Implications
For teaching? For training?
For practice?
For public policy?
(and... for research?)
Implications: Teaching
Need to be constructivistic Need to understand entrepreneurial
thinking Need to understand expert thinking Need to address deep beliefs Instructor MUST understand – or
share- the expert mindset.
Implications: Public Policy
Entrepreneurial Potential = F(quantity and quality of potential entrepreneurs)
Promote educational activities that nurture expert entrepreneurial thinking .
Support similar mechanisms for growing an entrepreneurial community
Program leaders MUST understand – or share- the expert mindset.
Implications: for Entrepreneurs
Work toward expert thinking – lifelong process?
Understand their own deep beliefs Good entrepreneurs are good at dot-
connecting; great entrepreneurs... Make sure your advisors understand
the “Entrepreneur Mind”(tm).
To those who want to really make a difference:
We know how to teach individuals (and organizations and communities) to think more entrepreneurially.
We now understand why and how.
How can we translate these insights into helping communities worldwide?
If you want to get involved in projects – research or applied:
Norris Krueger: [email protected] @entrep_thinking Facebook LinkedIn
Implications: Research Focus on expert entrepreneurial
thinking Focus on emotions Focus on cognitive change Focus on deep cognitive change Take advantage of:
Multi-disciplinary approaches New tools – theory & method
Take advantage of... us
Research Agenda: Antecedents & Consequences Antecedents
Impact of teaching/training methods Impact of instructor characteristics (e.g.,
mental models) Impact of context (including students) Developmental experiences?
Research Agenda: Antecedents & Consequences
Consequences Change in intent (Informed intent?) Change in knowledge content? Change in knowledge structure? Change in deep beliefs? How will we know?
Better dot-connecting? Amygdala lights up differently?