Entrepreneurs’ self-efficacy and business opportunity identification during COVID-19: the moderating role of social media interactions

Since the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak, there has been a progressive increase in the number of entrepreneurial exits. Interestingly, there have also been success stories of entrepreneurs who succeeded in taking advantage of this crisis to transform themselves, such as by adapting business models and revolutionizing entrepreneurship practices. Although clouded by various uncertainties and setbacks, promising opportunities exist in the market for entrepreneurs to discover and tap into. Drawing upon social cognitive theory, this study provides an explanation for why some entrepreneurs may be more successful than others in their search for business opportunities during difficult times such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Our multiple regression analyses of a sample of 405 microentrepreneurs from Japan during the pandemic highlight three notable findings. First, there is a positive association between entrepreneurial self-efficacy and business opportunity identification. Importantly, this positive association becomes stronger when entrepreneurs are also actively involved in digital communities with other entrepreneurs, which can be determined by their experience with a unified sense of community and their engagement in collaborative knowledge creation. Both theoretical and practical implications are discussed.