Entrepreneurial Hustle: Development and Validation of a Scale to Measure Entrepreneurial Hustle

Abstract

Entrepreneurial hustle refers to urgent and unorthodox actions that entrepreneurs take to move their ventures forward. Recent literature suggests entrepreneurial hustle is important for venture development. However, the literature on entrepreneurial hustle is limited without a valid and reliable measurement scale. We first elaborate the two dimensions of entrepreneurial hustle and specify its theoretical connections with other constructs. We then develop and validate a scale to measure entrepreneurial hustle. In Study 1, we generate items for the scale based on our theoretical developments and find evidence to support the content validity of these items. In Study 2, we collect additional data (N=232) to assess convergent, criterion, and discriminant validity and confirm factor structure. The results of Study 2 confirm entrepreneurial hustle is a second-order formative construct composed of two first-order reflective dimensions—urgency and unorthodoxy. Results also provide evidence for convergent, criterion, and discriminant validity. We contribute to the literature on entrepreneurial action by providing evidence that hustle is a valid behavioral construct and can be reliably measured with our new measurement scale.