Entrepreneurship proclivity : an exploratory study on student´s entrepreneurship intention

Abstract

This master thesis strives to establish the existence and characteristics of entrepreneurial intention among the students of Agder University. The study is carried out as a prove to put in practice research knowledge and theory acquired in the course of classroom study into practical reality. It is not an exhaustive or rather rigorous study but a mere demonstration of skills and capability of the student in carrying an independent research study. The study follows stage by stage procedures required in conducting any scienti¯c research. The research as well enables a researcher to acquire much of the knowledge on entrepreneurship and intentions. The result of this study pro- vides a detailed explanation of entrepreneurial intentions among students of this University. A model was developed in which the dependent and inde- pendent variables were derived from idea mostly borrowed from the theory of planned behaviours and model of entrepreneurial events. The concept of entrepreneurial intentions has been used in this study as a measure for entrepreneurial behaviours gauged by the trade o® a student has to make between two tendencies; being self employed or a job seeker, the former tendency being regarded as entrepreneurship. The study involved ¯ve operationalizations of intentions with which ¯ve hypotheses were tested. Gender and family background showed a greater statistical in°uence on en- trepreneurial intentions. The empirical data of this study is derived from a survey strategy. The sample for the survey comprised participants from all ¯ve faculties (up to masters level) of the university in which the university is organized. The sur- vey data of 1740 students was used to test the model using logistic regression analysis. The results of the study show a disproportionate existence of entrepreneurial intention among students. Gender and family background registered a higher in°uence on entrepreneurial intentions. With male and general population of students from family that have entrepreneurship experience showing much higher inclination towards self employment. On average the faculty of Eco- nomics and Social Science has its students indicating greater likelihood of becoming entrepreneurs. Keywords: Entrepreneurship, Entrepreneurial Intentions, Business enter- prises, Students.