Abstract
Although research has emphasized cognition and the use of heuristics and cognitive biases by entrepreneurs, the process by which available information influences one's decision to start a business has yet to be clarified. In order to address this issue, we propose and test a model where changes in the available information concerning a new venture impact the perceived risk associated with this venture— ultimately affecting the decision to start it. In our model, two important cognitive heuristics influence risk perception and bias decision making: availability and anchoring. Moreover, we hypothesize that these heuristics will have opposite effects, depending on whether the available information is framed in terms of gains or losses. In conducting this study, we contribute to research on entrepreneurial cognition and decision-making by deepening our understanding of how the combination of judgmental heuristics and the framing of situations stimulate or inhibit entrepreneurial behavior.