The power of positivity? The influence of positive psychological capital language on crowdfunding performance

Aaron H. Anglin, Jeremy C. Short, Will Drover, Regan M. Stevenson, Aaron F. McKenny and Thomas H. Allison

Journal of Business Venturing, 2018, vol. 33, issue 4, 470-492

Abstract: We extend the entrepreneurship literature to include positive psychological capital — an individual or organization's level of psychological resources consisting of hope, optimism, resilience, and confidence — as a salient signal in crowdfunding. We draw from the costless signaling literature to argue that positive psychological capital language usage enhances crowdfunding performance. We examine 1726 crowdfunding campaigns from Kickstarter, finding that entrepreneurs conveying positive psychological capital experience superior fundraising performance. Human capital moderates this relationship while social capital does not, suggesting that costly signals may, at times, enhance the influence of costless signals. Post hoc analyses suggest findings generalize across crowdfunding types, but not to IPOs.

Date: 2018
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (119)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jbvent:v:33:y:2018:i:4:p:470-492

DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusvent.2018.03.003

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