How women entrepreneurs influence reward-based crowdfunding performance: The mediating role of social and economic value orientation

In the emerging funding context, one notable inconsistency of crowdfunding in contrast to traditional venture capital settings is that women have an increased likelihood of obtaining funding. We explain the causal mechanism underlying this opposite finding by drawing on gender role expectations and warm glow theory. In this study, we examine whether the social value orientation mechanism derived from gender role expectations is a source of advantage for women entrepreneurs seeking funding on crowdfunding platforms. Our findings suggest that the judgments of funders are influenced by gender role expectations and warm glow effects. Seeking to invest in businesses run by female entrepreneurs would give much greater utility to the funder interested in social values. The results also indicate the important role of language and text on crowdfunding performance in early venture capital. Practically, using socially oriented language in project narratives are shortcuts for women entrepreneurs to improve their crowdfunding performance.