Factors impacting entrepreneurial intentions among university students in Saudi Arabia: testing an integrated model of TPB and EO

Abstract

PurposeThis research intends to contribute to the literature of entrepreneurial intentions through determining the factors impacting the entrepreneurial intentions among students in different academic programs. This is in order to enhance and improve entrepreneurship-related procedures within relevant universities.Design/methodology/approachThe study was conducted by a structured survey questionnaire on 261 students in the University of Hail. The questionnaire was developed based on previous studies. The proposed hypotheses were tested by the use of the structured equation modeling (SEM) via using Amos software.FindingsThe results of the current study support the theoretical integration of the model as most of the hypotheses have been accepted. The results of the survey also show that attitudes toward behavior, self-efficacy, autonomy, risk-taking, pro-activeness and competitive aggressiveness are expressively related with entrepreneurial intention. Yet, social norms and innovativeness are not considerably connected with entrepreneurial intention.Research limitations/implicationsThis study seeks to contribute to the relevant literature by integrating the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and the entrepreneurial orientation model (EO). This is in order to identify the factors impacting the intention of entrepreneurship among Saudi university students. As the case in many studies, this present study has some limitations. The main limitation lies in that it would not be possible to generalize the study's findings. This is due to the fact the research is the outcome of examining and studying one Saudi university. Therefore, it would be better to conduct similar studies in other Saudi universities in order to generalize the findings of the study.Practical implicationsThe study's results could be of value to policymakers and university administrators in Saudi Arabia universities by which they could be enabled to allocate resources, develop strategies and provide all requirements for the sake of improving entrepreneurial skills among university students. This comprehensive model can be used as a tool for planning and prioritizing resources in bid for providing the required support as this support would reinforce the entrepreneurial opportunity of university students. As such, students would have better thinking about entrepreneurial work and thus would be assisted in achieving their professional goals and the broader goal of nation building.Originality/valueSince today's youth are viewed as the potential future entrepreneurs, they should be encouraged to achieve the Saudi Kingdom's goals through creating suitable employment opportunities for them by supporting entrepreneurship. Therefore, pointing out the factors impacting the entrepreneurial intention of students will contribute to developing the field of entrepreneurship among young people in Saudi Arabic in general. In addition, realized outcomes would create an exciting new knowledge with regard to the entrepreneurial intention among the youth at the university level.

Redefining the link between Subjective Norm and Entrepreneurship Intention: Mediating Effect of Locus of Control

“…For instance, the support from peers and family can help to enhance individual attitude. Previous studies have also integrated TPB with entrepreneurship in the context of youth studies (e.g., Al-Mamary et al, 2020;Ridha, & Wahyu, 2017). Sharahiley (2020) for instance has found that innovativeness emerged as the strongest predictor of entrepreneurial intention and behaviour.…”

The university students enterprises development: Lesson from Indonesia

“…Subjective norms contribute to perceived social impact to involve or not to involve in entrepreneurship, while perceived behavior control is the ease or difficulty that an individual to a career as an entrepreneur (Entrialgo & Iglesias, 2016). While TRA notes that intention is often assumed to portrait the motivational dimensions which drive individual willingness or behavior (Al-Mamary et al, 2020;Koe et al, 2015). This theory believes that attitudes and subjective norms can explain intention.…”

Mediating role of strategic orientations in the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and performance of Saudi SMEs

“…Entrepreneurial orientation is an attractive research issue, especially regarding the business output (Covin & Wales, 2019, Al-Mamary et al, 2020a, Al-Mamary et al, 2020b. Execution, procedures and decision-making exercises are described to provide a guide for new and emerging enterprises (Rauch et al, 2009).…”