Control Beliefs and Positive Psychological Capital Can Nascent Entrepreneurs Discriminate Between What Can and Cannot be Controlled? Hayek Mario Texas A&M University - Commerce Management Department, College of Business & Technology Texas A&M University-Commerce P.O. Box 3011, Commerce, TX, 75429 Online published on 17 April, 2012. Abstract Entrepreneurs have been portrayed in a positive light as being dreamers, opportunity seekers, resilient, optimistic, and self- confident. The search for understanding the lens through which nascent entrepreneurs approach or perceive opportunities is a cornerstone of entrepreneurship research carrying significant practical implications. An important step in understanding how nascent entrepreneurs perceive opportunities is by understanding their perception of control over their environment. While the constructs that form the psychological capital construct, hope, resilience, optimism, and self-efficacy are all revered characteristics and highly associated with entrepreneurs, the consequences of these being applied to situations where the individual actually has a misplaced sense of control may have dire consequences. Top Keywords Nascent entrepreneur, control beliefs, psychological capital, opportunity recognition. Top |