| The purpose of the dissertation is comparing the performance impacts of entrepreneurs' error orientation in different cultures. The research started from three basic questions: (1) Does error orientation of entrepreneurs have effect on entrepreneurial susscess? (2) How does error orientation of entrepreneur affect entrepreneurial success? (3) Is there any difference in the effects of the error orientation of entrepreneur on entrepreneurial success in different cultures?Based on the action theory, the research studied the three questions of Chinese and German entrepreneurs. In the action theory, all the firm's performances are from firm's actions. The research included three groups of constructs: "error" constucts, "action" constucts, and performances. The entrepreneurs' error orientation was independent variable in the research. Since organizational characteristics are used to be the mediator in the association between entrepreneurs' traits and entrepreneurial performance(Begley & Boyd, 1986), the research used organizational error climate, which also was an error focused construct, as the mediator in the relationshihp between entrepreneurs' error orientation and entrepreneurial performance. And, based on the action theory, firms' performances are all from their actions, so the research employed entrepreneurs' goal commitment and entrepreneurial firms' action strategy as the mediators between those "error" constructs and entrepreneurial performances. After those analyses, the author compared the differences between Chinese and German samples in error orientation, error climate, action strategy, and the relationships between those constructs.The research used multiple sources in collecting data. Entrepreneurs' error orientation and goal commitment were measured by questionnaires and filled by owner-managers. Organizational error climate was measured by questionnaire and filled by 3 employees each firm. Firms' action strategy measured by interviewing of owner-manager first and rating by researchers later. Entrepreneurial performances consisted of perceived performances and objective performances. Perceived performances were entrepreneurial satisfication and perceived success. Those two constructs are very common subjective performance meansures in entrepreneurial researchs. Objective performances were growth measures in the research. After all growth is one of the most focused subjects. The growth measures were the sales growth and the scale growth, which were measured respectively by the averages of sales and employee numbers from 2004 to 2006. The multiple sources of data could reduce the common method bias.Samples were collected in China and Germany separately by Chinese and German research teams with the same criteria. Population was restricted in owner-managers of individual firms which were established less than 20 years and with less than 500 employees but at least 1 employee. German sample was collected in German provinces by the German research team. The sampling process was making appointment first, and then interviewing by telephone, and at last, after getting the interviewee's agreement, i.e. the owner-manger's agreement, researchers mailed questionnaires to them. The Chinese sample was collected in provinces of Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Shanghai, and Chongqing by the Chinese research team. The sampling process was making appointment first, and then researchers went to factories or offices of owner-managers. After interviews, researchers asked owner-managers filling questionnaires.The research analysis was splited into three parts based on Baron & Kenny (1986)'s approach:First, the research analyzed the performance impacts of "error" constructs. That is, the research tested the paths from entrepreneurs' error orientations to entrepreneurial performances, and the mediation of entrepreneurial firms' on between them. The analysis included four steps: (1) The research tested the construct structure of error orientation in Chinese context. (2) The research selected dimensions related with error solving, error communicating, and error learning of error orientation and error climate, and compared the differences of those dimensions between Chinese sample and German sample. (3) The research tested the hypothetical model with Chinese sample and German sample seperately. (4) The research tested the meansurement equivalence between Chinese sample and German sample and compared the two models. The results showed: (1) The comparison of "error" constructs between Chinese and German samples showed that error solving orientation of Chinese entrepreneurs was higher than that of German entrepreneurs and their error communicating and learning orientations were relatively lower. Within group comparison showed that error solving was the highest error orientation dimension in both Chinese and German entrepreneurs. Regarding error climates, Chinese entrepreneurial firms had higher error solving climate and lower error communicating climate than German entrepreneurial firms. (2) The performance impacts of Chinese entreprenerur's error orientation were not mediated by error climate of entreprenurial firms. On the contrary, the performance impacts of German entrepreneur's error orientation were mediated by error climate of entrepreneurial firms. (3) From the paths between error orientation and error climate, the author found a "projection" relationship. That is, dimensions of error orientation and dimensions of error climate were matched. For example, error learning orientation of entrepreneurs had effects on error learning climate of entrepreneurial firms, but had little or no significant effect on other error climates.Second, the research analyzed the performance impacts of "action" constructs. That is, the research tested the paths from entrepreneurs' goal commitment and firms' action strategies to entrepreneurial performances. Action strategy was so complicated a construct that the research employed two school of constructs: types of action strategy and traits of action strategy. The types of action strategy included comprehensive planning, critical point planning, opportunistic strategy, and reactive strategy. The traits of action strategy included detailedness, realisticness, proactiveness, amount of planning, and action in the past. The analysis included six steps: (1) The research compared the differences of the goal commitment and the types of action strategy between Chinese sample and German sample. (2) The research tested the hypothetical model of the types of action strategy with Chinese sample and German sample seperately. (3) The research tested the meansure-ment equivalence between Chinese sample and German sample and compared the previous two models. (4) The research compared the differences of the traits of action strategy between Chinese sample and German sample. (5) The research tested the hypothetical model of the traits of action strategy with Chinese sample and German sample seperately. (6) The research tested the meansurement equivalence between Chinese sample and German sample and compared the previous two models. The results showed: (1) Out of the four action strategies, comprehensive planning, critical point planning, and opportunistic strategy had performance impacts in Chinese sample and reactive strategy did not; comprehensive planning and critical point planning had performance impacts in German sample and opportunistic strategy and reactive strategy did not. Goal commitment had great effects on action strategies in German context, but had effect in Chinese context only when the opportunistic strategy was employed. (2) In Chinese context, action strategy's traits that had performace impacts were detailedness and proactiveness, and proactiveness was dominated. In German context, traits that had performance impacts were amount of planning, which was readiness of design, and action in the past, which was readiness for performing.At last, the research analyzed the mediating effects of "action" constructs on the performance impacts of "error" constructs. The research constructed the hypothetical models for Chinese sample and German sample based the results in previous two parts. After those hypothetical models were tested, the measurement equivalence was tested based on an unified model. As a complement, the research analyzed the impacts of "error" constructs on the traits of action strategy. The results showed: (1) After mediation tests, the author got two different action leadership modes: authoritative action leadership and participative action leadership. The performance impacts of entrepreneur's personality were mediated by action strategies in both action leadership modes. But the mediation effects were different. In the authoritative action leadership, entrepreneur's personality had direct impact on action strategies, and entrepreneur's goal commitment had little impact on action strategies. Although entrepreneur's personality had effects on organizational characters, organizational characters did not have mediation effect. In the participative action leadership, the entrepreneur's personality's influences on action strategies were mediated by organizational characteristics, and entrepreneur's goal commitment also had effects on action strategies. But there was no interactive effect between entrepreneur's personality and goal commitment. (2) Only error learning orientation of Chinese entreprenurs had effects on detailedness and proactiveness of action strategies. Only error learning climate and error communicating climate had effects on amount of planning and error climates of German entrepreneurial firms had no effect on action in the past.In each of the those parts, the author tried to explain those results based on the characteristics of entrepreneurial opportunities and leadership culture of China and Germany. In the emerging market, such as China, entreprenurial opportunities are more than the matured market, such as Germany. But the fading speed of opportunities is also higher. Becasue of lacking previous study regarding the differences of leadership culture between Chinese and German entrepreneurs, the research studied it before comparing. The results showed that Chinese entrepreneurs had higher assertiveness and power distance, which resulted to higher control in decision and real authority in organization, and German entrepreneurs had higher uncertainty avoidence and furture orientation, which resulted in higher standardization and formal authority in organizations. Gernerally, opportunities were more and fading quicker in emerging market, so Chinese entrepreneurs tended to be proactive and take critical point planning. And since entrepreneurs paid attenta-tion to control the power of decision, when encountering with errors, entrepreneurs prefered to involve and stress problem solving. Opportunities were more stable in matured market, so German entrepreneurs tended to make full preparation and take comprehensive planning. And because German entrepreneurs paid attenta-tion to formal norms, they were more likely to promote error communicating and learning to accumulate competence.The research results could be helpful in entrepreneural education and entrepreneurial practice.
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