Stereotypes about Academic Entrepreneurs and Their Negotiation Counterparts’ Collaborative Behavior

Abstract

This study examines the stereotypes associated with academic entrepreneurs (AEs) and their negotiation counterparts’ consequential collaborative behavior. A pilot study of in-depth interviews with 10 AEs showed that AEs considered their affiliations’ academic reputation and industrial experience important in influencing their business counterparts’ perceptions about them, which were characterized by two stereotype dimensions: warmth and competence. These constructs were integrated with stereotype content model literature and earlier research on AEs to develop a conceptual model about how stereotypes associated with AEs influence their counterparts’ collaborative behavior in negotiations. We tested this model by conducting an experiment using 192 small and medium-sized enterprise CEOs and executives as subjects. The results showed that AEs’ academic reputation positively predicted their perceived competence, whereas AEs’ industry experience negatively influenced their perceived warmth and positively influenced their perceived competence. Furthermore, both competence and warmth perceptions were found to contribute to negotiation counterparts’ collaborative behavior.