Per Davidsson

Within this study we propose that metacognitive thinking can be deliberately practiced in an entrepreneurial context. Further, we suggest such metacognitive thinking will lead to creation of entrepreneurial expertise by facilitating the self-reflection, understanding and control of one’s own entrepreneurial cognitions. A treatment group of 233 students in a four-month entrepreneurship program was exposed to a metacognitively-based curriculum, while a control group of 67 business students enrolled in an entrepreneurship course was not exposed to metacognitive elements. The expertise of both groups was compared. Our findings suggest that students exposed to a metacognitive treatment gain entrepreneurial expertise faster than those who are not. Additionally, close interaction with mentor entrepreneurs does not seem to have a specific effect on the nature of the treatment group expertise