Entrepreneurs' exit strategies : the role of emotion

Entrepreneurial exit strategies are the mode through which the entrepreneur intends to exit the firm such as harvest, stewardship, and voluntary cessation. This article examines the impacts of emotional disengagement entrepreneurs feeling of being emotionally distanced from the entrepreneurial activity on entrepreneurial exit strategies. We draw upon survey data across the UK. The analysis finds that entrepreneurs disengagement mediates the effects of antecedents on entrepreneurs intentions to choose different exit routes. However, its mediating effect varies according to the type of exit strategy, including voluntary cessation, harvest, and stewardship. The paper contributes to the understanding of the mechanism of exit intentions

Disengagement and Entrepreneurial Exit

This thesis aims to understand how psychological variables affect disengagement and the exit strategies that entrepreneurs pursue to leave their business. I propose emotional disengagement (i.e. feeling of being emotionally distanced from business) as a mediating psychological mechanism in the relationships between personal psychological antecedents and entrepreneurial exit and empirically examined this. By doing so, this study demonstrates that broader feelings toward the business can be directed toward the exit. Specifically, the results of my analysis indicate that emotional disengagement is consistently related to the entrepreneurial exit intentions and different strategies that entrepreneurs tend to pursue to exit their business, for example, the stewardship and voluntary cessation exit strategies. The unifying theme of this thesis – understanding the psychological mechanisms of entrepreneurial disengagement – guides the three studies that I carry out and present in the thesis. In the first article, I systematically review the literature on work disengagement. This article not only informs the conceptual framework of this study, but also collates, evaluates, and synthesises the current state of knowledge in the field. In the second article, I use the psychological theory of disengagement – derived from the systematic review – and examine how personal psychological variables affect physical disengagement from the business. In particular, I look at the effects of self-doubt, personal reputation, vision for the business and emotional support from entrepreneurs’ family. In this article, I propose that emotional disengagement serves as a psychological mediating mechanism in the antecedents-physical disengagement relationships, and test this within a sample of entrepreneurs across the UK using structural equations. In the third article, I examine whether and how emotional disengagement predicts entrepreneurial exit strategies. This article not only extends the second article in addressing the unique impact of emotional disengagement on stewardship, and voluntary cessation exit strategies, but also reconfirms the proposed mediating psychological mechanism of entrepreneurs’ emotional disengagement

Disengagement and entrepreneurial exit

This thesis aims to understand how psychological variables affect disengagement and the exit strategies that entrepreneurs pursue to leave their business. I propose emotional disengagement (i.e. feeling of being emotionally distanced from business) as a mediating psychological mechanism in the relationships between personal psychological antecedents and entrepreneurial exit and empirically examined this. By doing so, this study demonstrates that broader feelings toward the business can be directed toward the exit. Specifically, the results of my analysis indicate that emotional disengagement is consistently related to the entrepreneurial exit intentions and different strategies that entrepreneurs tend to pursue to exit their business, for example, the stewardship and voluntary cessation exit strategies. The unifying theme of this thesis - understanding the psychological mechanisms of entrepreneurial disengagement - guides the three studies that I carry out and present in the thesis. In the first article, I systematically review the literature on work disengagement. This article not only informs the conceptual framework of this study, but also collates, evaluates, and synthesises the current state of knowledge in the field. In the second article, I use the psychological theory of disengagement - derived from the systematic review - and examine how personal psychological variables affect physical disengagement from the business. In particular, I look at the effects of self-doubt, personal reputation, vision for the business and emotional support from entrepreneurs' family. In this article, I propose that emotional disengagement serves as a psychological mediating mechanism in the antecedents-physical disengagement relationships, and test this within a sample of entrepreneurs across the UK using structural equations. In the third article, I examine whether and how emotional disengagement predicts entrepreneurial exit strategies. This article not only extends the second article in addressing the unique impact of emotional disengagement on stewardship, and voluntary cessation exit strategies, but also reconfirms the proposed mediating psychological mechanism of entrepreneurs' emotional disengagement

Emotional closure and entrepreneurial exit

This research proposes emotional disengagement as a psychological closure from business. Using a sample of entrepreneurs in the UK, I test self-doubt, personal reputation, emotional support from entrepreneurs’ family and vision for the business as potential antecedents of emotional disengagement and entrepreneurs’ physical distance from their business. In sum, I find evidence that emotional disengagement mediates psychological antecedents-exit behaviour relationships. The results seem to indicate that entrepreneurs’ feelings toward their business may play a much more complex role in the exit behaviours

Emotion and business exit

This article examines the impacts of emotional disengagement on business exit strategies. Analysing survey data of 402 entrepreneurs across the UK we find that entrepreneurs’ emotional disengagement mediates the relationship between their vision for business and their exit strategies. However, the mediating effect varies according to their planned route to leave, including cessation, harvest, and stewardship. The paper makes three contributions. First, it helps explain the business exit from emotion point of view. Second, by illustrating the emotional disengagement-exit decision relationship, a link is established between research on disengagement and turnover intentions, to the field of entrepreneurship. Third, it provides evidence to help develop relevant non-financial and behavioural orientated support for those entrepreneurs seeking to exit their business.