The influence of academic and demographic factors on entrepreneurial intention antecedents among students of a Portuguese higher education institution

Abstract

Researchers have previously used the Theory of Planned Behavior as a theoretical framework to investigate entrepreneurial intention (EI). However, there are some studies that suggests that psychological factors such as spirituality (S), emotional intelligence (EmoI) and creativity(C) play an essential role in developing alternative EI models. This correlational study explores the relationships between EI antecedents (S, EmoI, C, personal attitudes towards entrepreneurship-PA and perceived behaviour control-PBC) and academic and demographic factors (gender, scientific study area, working experience, entrepreneurial family background, student status, entrepreneurial education, among others) of university students. A quantitative approach was used, through a personal questionnaire survey applied to 345 students in a Portuguese higher education institution. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics and correlation analysis. The correlation levels of S, EmoI, C, PA, PBC and EI are relatively low to moderate. There are strong positive correlations between EI, PA and PBC. The most creative students have higher levels of PA, PBC and EI. A moderate positive correlation is observed between EmoI and C, and between EmoI and PBC. S was not correlated to most of the concepts in the analysis. There are several significant associations between EI determinants and some academic and demographic variables, for example, higher EI levels occur with students that have "student-worker" status, with those that have taken part in entrepreneurship education programs, and those who have family members with their own business and have some experience in the labour market.In educational settings due consideration should be given to EmoI and C as to promote studentsÉI. The study has implications for academics involved in entrepreneurship education.