KOZUSZNIK, M.W, GREER, L., & EUWEMA, M. (2018) „CONFLICTS IN STARTUPS: TYPOLOGY AND MEASUREMENT”. THE 29TH ICAP CONGRESS, MONTREAL QUEBEC, CANADA

Conflicts among start-up founders are top reasons for high start-up failure rates. However, the research on conflicts in start-ups is practically inexistent andthe extant typology of conflicts in teams does not fit fully the start-ups’ reality. This work elaborates typologies of conflicts in start-ups and develops the STARFLICT measure.
The typology of conflicts among start-up founders (Study 1) and the STARFLICT assessment tool of conflicts in start-ups (Study 2) are developed using quantitative (questionnaires) and qualitative (interviews) data from 30 successful, failed, and current start-up teams. EFA and CFA are used. Data is analyzed using SPSS and Mplus software.
The results expand the existing typology of conflicts by including issues such as inclusion, equity, personal goals and values, influence and power, intellectual property, and commitment.The multidimensional STARFLICT measurement tool offers good psychometric properties.
The typology of conflicts in start-ups and the development the STARFLICT measurement tool for conflicts in start-ups developed in this work arenovel and address a timely issue of start-ups’ entrepreneurial success, making this work timely both for European economy, andfor the field of knowledge on conflicts in organizations. 
The knowledge generated in this research can contribute to create empirically-driven guidelines for start-ups on how to prevent and effectively deal with conflicts. This can allow taking early preventive actions to avoid start-up’s failure and to promote founders’ well-being and start-ups’ success rate.