Making a miracle: the interplay of grit and community belonging in polycrisis

Abstract Entrepreneurship research has long emphasized the role of external support systems as the backbone of entrepreneurial success. But what happens when these supports collapse under the weight of overlapping and persistent crises? This study turns the lens inward, exploring how entrepreneurs sustain performance amid the structural depletion of ecosystem resources. Using longitudinal data from Israeli tech entrepreneurs (2021–2025), we apply two complementary NLP techniques: topic modeling, to trace evolving themes in entrepreneurial discourse, and emotional dimension analysis, to capture shifts in affective tone. The analyses show that across this turbulent period, entrepreneurs increasingly expressed through their narratives the importance of psychological capital (PsyCap) and their sense of belonging to the community. As the polycrisis deepened, grit served as a psychological catalyst that strengthened the impact of psychological capital and community belonging on business performance. This amplifying effect grew stronger over time, highlighting grit’s central role in sustaining entrepreneurial resilience during prolonged adversity. We offer two key contributions: first, polycrisis conditions demand a rethinking of entrepreneurial resource models, spotlighting the emotional activation of internal capacities. Second, our methodological approach demonstrates how NLP can surface latent psychological mechanisms often hidden in traditional surveys. As polycrisis becomes a defining feature of the entrepreneurial landscape, understanding these internal responses becomes essential to both theory and practice.