Yonekura (1984) in the discussion paper on “Entrepreneurship and Innovative Behaviour of Kawasaki Steel” suggested the following traits: assertiveness, insistence, forward-looking, critical thinking, creativity, innovation, continuity, preparedness, responsibility, openmindedness, etc. Burch (1986) mentioned nine salient traits, which dictated a high propensity for one to behave entrepreneurially. They are: a desire to achieve, hard work, nurturing quality, able to accept responsibilities, reward oriented, optimistic, excellence-oriented, an organiser, and money oriented.
From the review of literature it is observed that innovation, risk-taking propensity, perseverance,
and flexibility are more common and consistently reported traits among entrepreneurs. Table 1
shows a summary of some of the previous studies on the four entrepreneurial traits.
| Entrepreneurial Traits | Author | Comment |
| Risk taking, Low harm avoidance | McClelland (1961); Ansoff (1972); Sexton & Bowman (1983; 1984); McBer & Co. (1986); Jantan et al. (2001); Ndubisi & Jantan (2003); Ndubisi et al. (2005). | Majority of the authors argued for high risk-taking propensity of entrepreneurs, and few think entrepreneurs take calculated risks. |
| Innovativeness or Low Conformity | McClelland (1961); Decarlo & Lyons (1979); Stevenson (1983); Sexton & Bowman (1983; 1984); Yonekura (1984), McBer & Co (1986); Jacobson (1993); Harper (1996); Kitchel (1997); Schumpeter (2000); Jantan et al. (2001); Ndubisi & Richardson (2002). | Going by the number of authors listed here, it is clear that many agree that innovativeness is one of the most common traits of entrepreneurs. |
| Flexibility or Change | Sexton & Bowman (1983; 1984); Kitchel (1997); Jantan et al. (2001); Ndubisi & Richardson (2002); Ndubisi & Jantan (2003); Ndubisi et al. (2005). | Flexibility has received much evidence as an entrepreneurial trait as did innovativeness, risk-taking and perseverance. Yet it is still attracting more research attention. |
| Perseverance/endurance, High energy level | McClelland (1961); Stevenson (1983); Sexton & Bowman (1983; 1984); Yonekura (1984); Burch (1986); McBer & Co (1986); Wells (1994); Henzel (1995); Kitchel (1997); Glick-Smith (1999); Jantan et al. (2001); Ndubisi & Jantan (2003) | Another common trait of entrepreneurs is perseverance. With innovativeness, risktaking and flexibility, perseverance form the set of most common entrepreneur traits. Hence, justifying their selection for the purpose of the current research. |
The entrepreneurial role has long been recognized as a prime source of innovation or creativity.
For many entrepreneurs, the basic drive is creativity and innovation to build something out of
nothing. They are always looking for something unique to fill a need or want (Ndubisi et al.
2003). Thus, more innovative women entrepreneurs are more likely to adopt computer
technologies.
It is therefore hypothesized as follows:
Hypothesis 2a: There is a significant direct positive relationship between innovativeness and
computer technology adoption.