An effort-recovery model for early-stage entrepreneurs’ work demands: the role of recovery experiences

Entrepreneurs can benefit from having non-work experiences that help them recover the psychological resources depleted from work tasks. Using the Effort-Recovery Model as a basis for understanding how recovery occurs, this study examines relationships between non-work recovery experiences (i.e. psychological detachment, relaxation, mastery, and control) and well-being (i.e. work engagement, emotional exhaustion, and sleep quality) in entrepreneurs, a unique sample population for studying the relationships between these constructs. We test hypotheses using a cross-sectional survey of 247 early-stage entrepreneurs that founded a business in the prior three years. Findings show that mastery and control experiences have a positive relationship with work engagement, control experiences have a negative relationship with emotional exhaustion, and psychological detachment experiences have a positive relationship with sleep quality. The results also suggest that higher work hours are related to lower relaxation and control experiences, whereas a higher number of employees is related to higher relaxation experiences and feelings of control over non-work time. Comparing these results to studies with employees, one implication is that low psychological detachment may be less harmful in the short-term for early-stage entrepreneurs. A second implication is that there are benefits of multiple after-work recovery experiences (i.e. psychological detachment, mastery, and control).