The Relation between ADHD-like Behavior and Entrepreneurial Intentions, and the role of ESE in this Relation

The present study investigates the relationship between a psychiatric disorder, Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), and the entrepreneurial tendency of an individual. Taking into account the importance that entrepreneurial self-efficacy (ESE) has for an individual who pursues an entrepreneurial career, we will also examine whether it can, in some way, explain the potential impact of ADHD on entrepreneurial intentions. The dataset we use consists of 159 economic students from the Erasmus University Rotterdam and was gathered in September 2013. We will perform ordinary least squares regressions along with principal component analysis and Sobel test for the analysis of our data. The results indicate a positive association between entrepreneurial self-efficacy and entrepreneurial intentions, and a negative one between ADHD and entrepreneurial self-efficacy. With regard to our initial aim, we could not find conclusive evidence about a direct connection of ADHD with entrepreneurial intentions. However, we find supportive evidence about an indirect relation between ADHD-like behavior and entrepreneurial intentions through ESE. Our results suggest that a student with ADHD symptoms exhibits lower entrepreneurial self-efficacy, leading to fewer probabilities in becoming an entrepreneur. Due to the limitations of our study, future research is proposed for a more in-depth analysis of the present topic.