Thesis Topic
Many startups are founded not by individuals, but by teams. While co-founding teams can benefit from diverse knowledge, skills, and perspectives, they also face a higher risk of conflict. Especially in early-stage startups, disagreements between co-founders may shape not only team satisfaction and collaboration, but also important venture outcomes such as fundraising success.
We conduct a large-scale longitudinal study on startup founder teams. Inspired by the work of marriage researcher John Gottman, we investigate whether emotional dynamics, conflict behavior, physiological arousal, and interpersonal interaction patterns can help predict the success or failure of startup teams.
This master’s thesis focuses on the role of conflict in founder dyads and examines how different types of conflict may influence a startup’s ability to secure funding.
The thesis may address questions such as:
- How do task conflict and relationship conflict differ in their impact on fundraising success?
- Can constructive task conflict improve venture outcomes by strengthening decision quality or pitch preparation?
- Does relationship conflict reduce the likelihood of securing funding?
- Under which conditions can conflict become beneficial or harmful for founder dyads?
- How do conflict patterns develop over time in early-stage startup teams?
Data and Method
The thesis will be based on data from a longitudinal research project on startup founder teams. The dataset includes information from more than 200 startups and may involve questionnaire data, behavioral data, video-based interaction measures, and venture outcome indicators.
Possible analytical approaches include:
- Regression analysis
- Longitudinal data analysis
- Dyadic data analysis
- Interaction/moderation analysis
The final methodological approach will be refined together.
Your Profile
We are looking for a student with:
- Interest in entrepreneurship, startups, and founding teams
- Interest in psychological team dynamics, especially conflict and interpersonal relationships
- Organizational skills and proactive communication
- Reliable and self-driven working style
- Interest in quantitative research methods
- Since parts of the broader project are conducted in German, fluent German language skills are mandatory
Application
Please send your complete application documents (CV, Transcript of Records) in one PDF file to:
Nathalie Schenk