Little is known about the relation between validated psychiatric symptoms scores and the entrepreneurial decision. Building on the Person-Environment (P-E) fit literature and using data of over 10,000 students, we test whether individuals with higher levels of attention deficit and hyperactivity (ADHD) have higher entrepreneurial career intentions compared to others. We find that students reporting higher levels of ADHD-like behavior (assessed with a symptom score on an ADHD screening scale) are more likely than their peers to display entrepreneurial intentions and become student entrepreneurs. This can be partly explained by their high need for independence and their risk tolerance.

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Erasmus Research Institute of Management
hdl.handle.net/1765/37266
ERIM Report Series Research in Management
Erasmus Research Institute of Management

Verheul, I., Block, J., Burmeister-Lamp, K., Thurik, R., Tiemeier, H., & Turturea, R. (2013). ADHD-like behavior and entrepreneurial intentions (No. ERS-2012-011-STR). ERIM Report Series Research in Management. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/1765/37266