Work

When does mental well-being matter for entrepreneurial income? The role of external objective resources from social contexts

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Entrepreneurs’ mental well-being has increasingly captured the attention of both scholars and the broader public. Building on self-efficacy theory and conservation of resources (COR) theory, we examine how entrepreneurs’ mental well-being influences their income. We theorize that while mental well-being positively influences entrepreneurial income, this baseline relationship is moderated by the external objective resources entrepreneurs access through their social contexts. Using a rich longitudinal dataset of 1,013 entrepreneurs in Germany between 2002 and 2015, we find that entrepreneurs’ mental well-being is positively associated with their income. This relationship is weaker for entrepreneurs with access to external objective resources, specifically those with a high-earning spouse or prior state support, and stronger for those who have experienced resource loss through divorce. We also complement our analysis of the archival database with a randomized online experiment to test our underlying argument for the interaction effect between mental well-being and external objective resources on self-efficacy. Our findings offer new insights into how entrepreneurs’ mental well-being, COR, and self-efficacy jointly shape their work-related outcomes.

Source: Entrepreneurship and Regional Development

DOI: 10.1080/08985626.2026.2739524

Authors: Josh Wei-Jun Hsueh, Miriam Bird, Vangelis Souitaris, Dean Shepherd

Institutions: Jönköping University, Technical University of Munich, City, University of London, University of Notre Dame

Language: English

Topic: Entrepreneurship Studies and Influences

Subfield: Management of Technology and Innovation

Field: Business, Management and Accounting

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Decent work and economic growth, No poverty

Open Access status: hybrid

Funder: Universität St. Gallen