Entrepreneurial Traits, Entrepreneurial Environment Perception, and New Venture Performance: Empirical Evidence from Chinese Firms

Entrepreneurs, as initiators of entrepreneurial activities, have long been one of important research objects in the field of entrepreneurship research and, however, there has been no study reported on how entrepreneurial traits influence venture performance from a perspective of entrepreneurial orientation. This study explored the relationship between entrepreneurial traits and venture performance by focusing on the mediating role of entrepreneurial orientation and the moderating role of entrepreneurial environment perception. Using time-lagged data from 321 private enterprises in China, the results reveal that entrepreneurial traits are positively related to venture performance, and this link is mediated by entrepreneurial orientation. Additionally, moderated path analysis indicates that entrepreneurial environment perception strengthens the direct effect of the entrepreneurial traits on entrepreneurial orientation and its indirect effect on venture performance. This study extends the scope of entrepreneurial traits research, and provides evidence for arguments that entrepreneurship in the context of China.