A realist philosophical understanding of entrepreneurial risk-taking

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to utilise Vilfredo Pareto ' s Machiavellian-realist social theory to provide a distinctive realist philosophical understanding of entrepreneurial risk-taking. By doing so, this paper seeks to stimulate debate and encourage future empirical testing that has the potential to present a richer understanding of entrepreneurial risk-taking. Design/methodology/approach – To establish that a realist perspective can help theorise entrepreneurship, the authors look through a modern day risk and uncertainty optic at the hidden mechanisms within the social world where enterprises operate. Looking from this unique standpoint, where the long established social theory is reinvigorated by contemporary risk philosophy within a shared realist paradigm, human nature equips entrepreneurs with certain “animal spirits” to muddle blindly and instinctually through their risk environments. Findings – The paper argues that this combined perspective unlocks a much richer understanding of entrepreneurial risk-taking, in particular, by capturing more of its behavioural reality and despite our strong emphasis on the inaccessibility and hiddenness of the risk environment to the entrepreneur, by exploring the entrepreneur-risk environment fit in ecological terms. Originality/value – The paper’s unique blend of the classical Italian social theory with the contemporary risk theory offers a novel ecological view of the entrepreneur’s blind (mal) adaptation to their risk environment.