Firm Lifespan, Temporal Focus, and Entrepreneurial Reentry after Failure: A Utility Theory Perspective

Abstract Entrepreneurial reentry after business failure is an important area of research in the field of entrepreneurship. However, previous studies have largely overlooked the crucial role of time factors – both objective and subjective – in the context of failure and subsequent entrepreneurial endeavors. This study aims to fill this gap by examining the impact of firm lifespan on entrepreneurial reentry and the moderating effect of entrepreneurs’ temporal focus. Through manual matching across multiple databases, we obtain a sample of 368 entrepreneurs. The results show that a longer firm lifespan negatively influences entrepreneurial reentry and that a past focus further amplifies this negative relationship. This study contributes to research on the determinants of entrepreneurial reentry and provides theoretical insights into the role of time in entrepreneurial reentry.