This paper firstly sorts out the conceptual connotation of entrepreneurial imagination from the perspectives of ability, behavior, and process on the basis of tracing the origin of entrepreneurial imagination research, redefines entrepreneurial imagination based on the comparative analysis of different perspectives and the research results of different disciplines, and summarizes the existing measurement methods of entrepreneurial imagination and their shortcomings. Then, based on literature organization and summarization, it obtains the core research themes of entrepreneurial imagination, extracts the influencing factors and effects of entrepreneurial imagination, and reviews the existing researches in depth. Finally, it extracts research conclusions based on comprehensive analysis and looks forward to the future directions of the research.

The findings are as follows: Entrepreneurial imagination originates from philosophy, which belongs to the emerging research field of the interdisciplinary intersection of philosophy, psychology, economics, management, etc. Existing literature mainly develops the measurement scale of entrepreneurial imagination from the perspectives of ability, behavior, and process. Entrepreneurial imagination is mainly affected by prior experience, entrepreneurial knowledge, entrepreneurial alertness, and environmental uncertainty. Entrepreneurial imagination can positively affect entrepreneurial opportunities, entrepreneurial narratives, entrepreneurial vision, entrepreneurial decision-making, entrepreneurial ideation, and entrepreneurial reasoning, and also has a certain role in promoting organizational creativity, value creation, and inter-organizational innovation.T

his paper mainly systematically reviews the current research status of entrepreneurial imagination from the aspects of research origin, conceptual connotation, measurement methods, and core research themes, summarizes the existing research of entrepreneurial imagination, and points out the deficiencies therein, so as to show the whole picture of entrepreneurial imagination research, provide guidance for subsequent research, and enhance the systematic and holistic nature of entrepreneurial imagination research.