The Narcissism of Crowdfunding Entrepreneurs

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The narcissism of established CEOs is known to affect corporate decisions and outcomes. We study
the impact of crowdfunding entrepreneurs' narcissism on campaign design and campaign outcome,
formulating hypotheses for both aspects. We distinguish between ego-defensive narcissism and
grandiose/arrogant narcissism in the hypotheses for campaign design. We find that more narcissistic
crowdfunding entrepreneurs set less ambitious goals, consistent with ego-defensive narcissism. We
further document that more narcissistic entrepreneurs are less successful than other entrepreneurs,
suggesting that crowdfunders recognize the narcissistic tendencies of entrepreneurs and are more
reluctant to support them. Our results are consistent with recent conceptual research, suggesting that
there are specific effects of narcissism in the early-stage entrepreneurial context.

Author(s):

Helen Bollaert    
SKEMA Business School - Université Côte d'Azur
France

Armin Schwienbacher    
SKEMA Business School - Université Côte d'Azur
France

Gaël Leboeuf    
SKEMA Business School - Université de Lille
France