Antecedents of New Venture Creation Decision in Iranian High-Tech Industries: Conceptualizing by a Non-Teleological Approach

Entrepreneurs' decision-making process is one of the main research topics in entrepreneurship studies. This research aims to conceptualize the antecedents of new venture creation decision in Iranian high tech industries. The research utilizes an innovative non-teleological approach in order to take into account the specific regional context of Iran. Most research into entrepreneurial decision making utilizes teleological approaches; however, these models could not adequately explain the phenomena within the Iranian context. This qualitative study utilized event- based interviews with 20 nascent entrepreneurs. Results from coding, categorizing and validating the research findings, revealed 3 main categories as antecedents of new venture creation decision. Accordingly, concepts of entrepreneurial meta-cognition; primary actions and receiving feedback; and positive attitude toward change, constitute the main antecedents of new venture creation decision in this context. The findings also reveal the non-teleological nature of entrepreneurial decision-making, and adoption of some effectuation logics in the studied decision-making process. Keywords: Entrepreneurship, Process, New Venture Creation, Decision-Making, Non-Teleological Approach According to many leading experts in the field of entrepreneurship studies, the "process" of new venture creation, is the central characteristic that distinguishes entrepreneurship from other disciplines such as management and economics (e.g., Shane Locke, & Collins, 2003; Gartner, Carter, & Reynolds, 2010). Authors such as Venkataraman, Sarasvathy, Dew, and Forster (2012), Baron and Shane (2007) and Shane et al. (2003) advocate the importance of using process approaches in entrepreneurship studies and the need to study entrepreneurs in the whole continuum of the entrepreneurial process as a means of achieving a good understanding of entrepreneurial action. Entrepreneurial action is a phenomenon that results in a new venture as one of its main objective outcomes. Ignoring the formation process of these outcomes, results in a defective explanation of this phenomenon, and deviation from the main tenets of entrepreneurship as an academic discipline. In fact, due to the constantly evolving nature of the field of entrepreneurship, research monitoring of the process of new venture creation is constantly required (Gartner et al., 2010). One of the focal concepts in the process of new venture creation is the decision-making process for new venture creation (Gustafsson, 2006). In general, the decision-making process includes identifying and defining a problem, collecting and analyzing data, building or finding alternative solutions and finally, evaluating alternatives, and selecting one of them (Abelson & Levi, 1985). In the entrepreneurial context, this process takes place under ambiguity or uncertainty (Shepherd McMullen, & Jennings, 2007), hence, entrepreneurs' decision-making is a process that can only be explained by adopting new assumptions (Sarasvathy, 2001, 2008). On this basis, familiar models based on classical and neoclassical rules, decision-making based on bounded-rationality and influenced by ends (March & Simon, 1958; Simon, 1979) and numerous models based on cognitive biases in cognitive psychology cannot reach a proper explanation for entrepreneurs' decision-making as a meta-cognitive process. The major reason for these inappropriate explanations is the teleological approach of existing models (Buchanan & Vanberg, 1991). The decision-making process of entrepreneurs in any society is influenced by the context and business environment (North, 1990; Fuduric, 2008). According to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) report (Singer, Amoros, & Arreola, 2015), Iran has a factor-driven economy which is also in transition to the efficiency-driven economy. The results of GEM (2014) show that in terms of perceived capabilities (whether individuals feel they have the knowledge and skills to start up), and early-stage entrepreneurial activity, Iran exceeds the average of its neighbours in the Asian and Oceania region. …