Balancing entrepreneurial need satisfaction and passion for venture success

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate how the satisfaction of entrepreneurs' psychological needs affects venture growth beliefs and perceived financial performance under conditions of harmonious and obsessive passion. Design/methodology/approach Through the integration of self-determination theory and the dualistic model of passion, a research framework is developed and quantitatively tested among 255 Latvian small- and medium-sized enterprise entrepreneurs, as well as replicated among 205 Russian entrepreneurs, with the utilization of EQS and SPSS software. Findings We reveal that satisfaction of entrepreneurial psychological needs facilitates the emergence of positive venture growth beliefs, which in turn improves financial performance. Additionally, harmonious passion positively moderates the link between entrepreneurial need satisfaction and venture growth beliefs, while obsessive passion negatively conditions the relationship of entrepreneurial need satisfaction with perceived financial performance. Research limitations/implications This research is limited by the cross-sectional design of the study and the self-reported nature of the construct measurements. Practical implications The results can help entrepreneurs reflect on whether their need satisfaction at work is high enough to productively make venture-related decisions, act upon identified opportunities and expand their business horizons, as well as encourage them to be more passionate yet balanced in their entrepreneurial efforts. Originality/value Scant research attention has been given to the examination of how satisfaction of psychological needs affects entrepreneurial attitudes, beliefs and actions, and in turn, firm performance. This research responds to a call for more studies on cognitive and behavioral entrepreneurship.