In the context of the humanitarian refugee crisis in Germany, we conducted an 8-month qualitative study of prosocial ventures that emerged during this crisis to build a theory of motivation in prosocial venturing. We identified two venturing paths driven by founders’ distinct motivations. Founders motivated by others’ suffering focused on rescuing refugees, following an execution-oriented approach, and scaling their activities to meet victims’ short-run needs. Founders motivated by entrepreneurial aspirations focused on building an organization, following a foundation-oriented approach, and customizing activities to meet victims’ long-run needs. This study contributes to prosocial venturing and crisis research.

在德国人道主义难民危机的背景下，我们对危机期间出现的亲社会企业进行了为期 8 个月的定性研究，以建立亲社会企业的动机理论。我们确定了由创始人不同动机驱动的两条风险投资路径。受他人苦难激励的创始人专注于营救难民，遵循以执行为导向的方法，并扩大他们的活动以满足受害者的短期需求。受创业抱负激励的创始人专注于建立一个组织，遵循以基金会为导向的方法，并定制活动以满足受害者的长期需求。这项研究有助于亲社会冒险和危机研究。