Entrepreneurial Intention among MBA students

Abstract

When I was getting ready to take an elective course on the topic of entrepreneurship, I wondered what makes MBA students, sometimes considering future engines of innovation and economic growth, wanting to go into business of their own. To investigate this, I formulated a quantitative study, which evaluated the interaction between attitudinal predispositions towards entrepreneurship, subjective norms, the locus of control, entrepreneurial self-efficacy and the presence of environmental support. The statistics indicate that there exists a strong connection between a positive attitude and the increase of entrepreneurial intentions, thus the encouragement in the MBA programs is important. The subjective norms, i.e., the sense of social pressure to become an entrepreneur, also proved a significant determinant. The discovery points to the importance of having role models and success stories visible among the MBA cohorts, to generate interest. Entrepreneurial self-efficacy as well as intentions were greatly influenced by locus of control which is the belief that a person can influence the outcomes. That is, those students who perceive the possibility of affecting the outcomes will consider having the possibility to start a successful business. All the findings together indicate that positive thoughts, the social pressure, internal location control were significant wits as a determination of entrepreneurship intention in MBA students. These factors are critical in helping to shape a proper entrepreneurial program aimed at fostering future entrepreneurs.