Examining Competing Entrepreneurial Concerns in a Social Question and Answer (SQA) Platform

Abstract

This study aims to determine the competing concerns of people interested in startup development and entrepreneurship by using topic modeling and sentiment analysis on a social question-and-answer (SQA) website. Understanding the underlying concerns of startup entrepreneurs is critical to society and economic growth. Therefore, greater scientific support for entrepreneurship remains necessary, including data mining from virtual social communities. In this study, an SQA platform was used to identify the sentiment of thirty concerns of people interested in startup entrepreneurship. Based on topic modeling and sentiment analysis of 18819 inquiries in various forums on an SQA, we identified additional questions about founder figures, keys to success, and the location of a startup. In addition, we found that general questions were rated more positively, especially when it came to pitching, finding good sources, disruptive innovation, idea generation, and marketing advice. On average, the identified concerns were considered 48.9 percent positive, 41 percent neutral, and 10.1 percent negative. This research establishes a critical foundation for future research and development of digital startups by outlining a variety of different concerns associated with startup development in the digital age.