Strategic Thinking and Entrepreneurial Orientation: The Relationship and Role in Product Performance

The discourse on cognition and cognitive abilities has remained relatively sparse within the entrepreneurship literature. The present study examines the role of entrepreneurial strategic thinking as an antecedent of entrepreneurial orientation and its influence on product performance. It further investigates how a dynamic environment shapes these relationships. The findings highlight the critical role of entrepreneurial strategic thinking in the development of entrepreneurial orientation and indicate that entrepreneurial orientation partially mediates the relationship between strategic thinking and product performance. The results also challenge conventional assumptions by suggesting that the effects of proactiveness, a dimension of entrepreneurial orientation, on product performance may become detrimental in a dynamic environment. As the first study to position entrepreneurial strategic thinking as an antecedent of entrepreneurial orientation, this research contributes to the broader entrepreneurship domain by demonstrating that cognitive factors, such as strategic thinking, play a pivotal role in shaping venture outcomes.