The Journal of Socio-Economics 40 (2011) 124–131 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect The Journal of Socio-Economics journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/soceco Motivation, self-efficacy, and risk attitudes among entrepreneurs during transition to a market economy Tadeusz Tyszka a,∗ , Jerzy Cie ´ slik b , Artur Domurat c , Anna Macko a a Faculty of Economic Psychology, Kozminski University, ul. Jagiellonska 59, 03-301 Warsaw, Poland b Faculty of Management, Kozminski University, ul. Jagiellonska 59, 03-301 Warsaw, Poland c Faculty of Psychology, University of Warsaw, ul. Stawki 5/7, 00-183 Warsaw, Poland article info Article history: Received 12 March 2010 Received in revised form 4 January 2011 Accepted 30 January 2011 JEL classification: L26 Keywords: Entrepreneurship Entrepreneurial Motivation Self-efficacy Risk attitudes abstract In this research were investigated the three most frequently studied characteristics of entrepreneurs – motivation, self-efficacy, and risk attitudes. We divided the sample of entrepreneurs into two subgroups: opportunity-driven vs. necessity-driven. In agreement with findings of research performed in countries with developed market economies, we found that the need for independence and the need for achieve- ment were of higher importance to the entrepreneurs than to the non-entrepreneurs. However, this was only true of the opportunity-driven subgroup of entrepreneurs, while not of those categorized as necessity-driven. In contrast, the most important motive in the group of non-entrepreneurs and as well as the necessity-driven subgroup of entrepreneurs was job security. In accordance with Knight’s claim, we found that opportunity-driven (but not necessity-driven) entrepreneurs revealed higher levels of self- confidence than the group of employees. We did not find support for the claim that entrepreneurs are more risk-prone than wage earners. On the other hand, entrepreneurs (both opportunity- and necessity- driven) reported more everyday risky investment activities than wage earners did. We interpret this observation in terms of the necessity of entrepreneurs for risk-taking, rather than personal preference and liking. © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction There is a long history of research on the personal characteristics (traits and motivation) of entrepreneurs (see, e.g., Brandstaetter, 1997). The general finding is that although some traits and motives are related to both an individual’s decision to become an entrepreneur (e.g., Wärneryd, 1988), as well as to venture per- formance (Baum et al., 2001), these relationships are generally weak. The most probable reason for this seems to be that the entrepreneurs do not function in isolation from environmental fac- tors. The overall objective of the present study was to examine moti- vation, self-efficacy, and risk attitude – the three most frequently studied characteristics of entrepreneurs – in a specific environ- ment. That environment being Poland in transition. When studying entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship in Poland and other Central- East European countries, one cannot avoid placing the whole analysis in the context of a systemic change – of a radical socio- economic and political transition from a Communist to a market ∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +48 22 519 21 89. E-mail address: ttyszka@wspiz.edu.pl (T. Tyszka). economy. One reason for this is the relatively short time elapsed since the dismantling of the Communist bloc in Central and Eastern Europe. Such a period of approximately 20 years in most country has been proven too brief to allow a full-degree of market maturity, particularly in the shaping of the relevant environment of certain institutions. As Osborn and Slomczynski (2005) state, the historical developments that took place during the Communist era and dur- ing the transition (particularly in its initial years), have profoundly affected attitudes and perceptions as well as the pool of available entrepreneurial skills. How did these historic roots affect the performance and oper- ating patterns of Polish entrepreneurs once the systemic transition got underway in 1989? Most striking was the obsolete character of specific operating skills embedded in the context of a com- mand economy. Even despite substantial experience in the field, the apparent lack of a proactive, customer-focused attitude among the “old entrepreneurs” made them unable to cope with the new reality and, all the more so, to compete with new entrepreneurial start-ups. According to estimates, less than 10% of the 1.7 million businesses currently active in Poland can trace their roots to the pre-1989 period. Those which were able to survive had to entirely re-engineer their businesses, as illustrated by the following state- ment of an old-style entrepreneur: 1053-5357/$ – see front matter © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.socec.2011.01.011