RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ENTREPRENEURIAL ORIENTATION AND THE INTENTION TO PURSUE DIGITAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP: OPPORTUNITY EVALUATION IN SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES

Over the past several years the connection between entrepreneurship and digital technologies has transformed the way business is conducted. This, coupled with reactions to the coronavirus outbreak that have caused interruptions to significant economic and business activities, has exponentially accelerated the implementation of digital technologies. Yet intentions to pursue digital entrepreneurship remain understudied, while an increasing number of small and medium-sized businesses continue the adoption of digital technologies unabated. Do strategic processes that are the basis for decision making and actions play a role in the intention to pursue digital technologies?
This dissertation examines the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and intention to pursue digital entrepreneurship, and whether this relationship is moderated by opportunity evaluation. Data was gathered from entrepreneurs (N=240) through a cross-sectional survey approach, and regression analysis was used to analyze the data. A confirmatory factor analysis was also performed. The results indicate that entrepreneurial orientation is positively linked to intention to adopt digital technologies. The study found evidence of interaction effects between two opportunity evaluation constructs: loss estimation and perceived feasibility and entrepreneurial orientation. The results signal the importance of studying moderators of the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and entrepreneurial intention to adopt digital technology.