FINDING THE PASSION TO PERSEVERE: AN EXPLORATION OF THE MECHANISMS BY WHICH PASSION FUELS ENTREPRENEURIAL GRIT

The ability to persevere, to push through setbacks and adversity on the long road to success is often viewed as a hallmark of entrepreneurial success. Perseverance, or grit, is an important component of an overarching complex system of self-governing behaviors commonly referred to as self-regulation. Self-regulation is widely viewed as a crucial factor in the success of the individual in a wide variety of contexts, but at present we know relatively little about how the various component behaviors interact with and reinforce one another. Additionally, research probing how individuals develop self-regulatory behaviors – like grit – is in its infancy. This research seeks to address this gap by investigating the antecedents of grit and finds that passion acts as an indirect antecedent of grit, with its effects mediated by two self-regulatory mechanisms: locomotion and learning goal orientation. Our results also indicate that assessment has a negative relationship with grit. Implications of these findings are then discussed.