Abstract

In this doctoral thesis, we have tried to find an answer to the two main questions in the field of entrepreneurship: (1) who is the entrepreneur? And (2) what does he do? We feel confident that the exploratory study we conducted accomplished that, at least partially. The field of entrepreneurship is a domain still searching for a definition, a unifying paradigm which could explain and predict this empirical phenomenon. A consensus exists around the necessity of using qualitative methods to study entrepreneurship and the necessity of studying at the same time the entrepreneur and what he does. In this thesis, if we have not yet discovered a definitive answer to these two fundamental questions, we have discovered the first elements of an answer. In order to do so, we have used qualitative methods to study in depth three cases of entrepreneurship in depth. We have also reversed a concept generally accepted in entrepreneurship, i.e. that there is an element of innovation, of creativity, in entrepreneurship. Indeed, we started with the idea that entrepreneurship is included within a much larger phenomenon: creativity. In this sense, entrepreneurship would be an example of creativity applied to the recognition of opportunities and the creation of new ventures. Thus, we have defined the distinctive character of the creative individual as made up of three main components: (1) a creative psychodynamics which urges the individual to define a personal identity by himself and to assert it through creative endeavors, to constantly search to surpass his dissatisfactions; (2) a mild bipolarity which enables him to naturally and regularly develop multiple and original associations in many different situations, and to seize the incongruities existing in a particular field and thus perceive the opportunities lying outside others' field of vision, and (3) an ego strength superior to the average individual which gives him the strength to face all life's difficulties, and more particularly the profound anguish associated with the creative process. Finally, we have defined the creative process as made up of five successive steps: (1) a creative shock in which a mostly unconscious image, intuition, or vision is imposed on the creative individual; (2) a more conscious decoding of the signs and symbols seized in the previous step; (3) a translation of these signs and symbols into a code and material known within a specific field; (4) the material composition itself, and (5) the exhibition of the work to the outside world. Our research also allowed us to define the entrepreneurial process since we were able to use and slightly modify our model of the creative process. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)