An exploratory study on the role of entrepreneurial perceptions in sustainability strategy adoption among early-stage businesses: the case of Italy

Abstract This study explores the factors influencing the adoption of sustainability strategies among early-stage businesses in the Italian entrepreneurial ecosystem, focusing on how entrepreneurial self-perception and context perception shape sustainability orientation and business growth expectations. Using data from the 2024 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) Italy Adult Population Survey, two composite indices were developed to capture entrepreneurial self-perception and context perception among individuals involved in early-stage entrepreneurial activity. The results reveal differentiated cognitive pathways in sustainability-related entrepreneurial decision-making. Entrepreneurial self-perception significantly strengthens sustainability orientation, yet this orientation does not necessarily translate into the adoption of formal sustainability strategies. In contrast, perceptions of the entrepreneurial context appear more strongly associated with sustainability strategy adoption than with the formation of sustainability orientation itself. Furthermore, sustainability strategy adoption is negatively associated with business growth expectations, suggesting that early-stage entrepreneurs may perceive sustainability commitments as involving short-term trade-offs or additional resource constraints. Exploratory moderation analyses offer tentative evidence of sample heterogeneity; specifically, the positive effect of self-perceptions on sustainability orientation appears marginally weaker for women, while the negative link between strategy adoption and growth expectations is more pronounced among entrepreneurs with upper secondary education. Overall, the findings highlight the complex and non-linear interplay between sustainability orientation and strategic action within early-stage entrepreneurship. By examining these dynamics within the Italian entrepreneurial ecosystem, this exploratory study provides context-specific insights into the cognitive and contextual mechanisms shaping sustainability-related decision-making in nascent ventures and offers policy-relevant indications for supporting the translation of sustainability orientations into effective entrepreneurial strategies.