Assessing the Influence of Entrepreneurship Education on Self efficacy, Attitude and Entrepreneurial Intentions

The extent to which entrepreneurship education can affect either directly or indirectly students’ intentions to start a new business has become an issue of great relevance among scholars. Extensive review of the literature revealed that current practices in entrepreneurship education are in the direction to enhance students’ confidence and induce self-belief mentality in their capabilities to start a new business (Zhao, Seibert, & Hills, 2005; Souitaris, Zerbinati, & Al-Laham, 2007; Izuierdo & Buelens, 2008). This studies show that this mechanism is associated with entrepreneurial self-efficacy and attitude. Previous research have argued that among other variables, perceptions of formal learning from entrepreneurship-related courses are expected to have a positive influence on intentions especially through the mediation of entrepreneurial self-efficacy and attitude. This study was set to firstly identify the extent to which entrepreneurship education affects entrepreneurial intentions and secondly through the mediation of entrepreneurial self-efficacy and attitude. The drive towards economic development and self-reliance has necessitated the need for stakeholders, such as educational instructors, policy makers, institutional training authorities and educational providers to understand the influence of entrepreneurship education, on entrepreneurial self-efficacy, attitude and on entrepreneurial intentions. The knowledge of this assist in formulating and implementing more effective and robust entrepreneurial education programmes and designing of entrepreneurship curricula that will help to equip students with the skills required to spur entrepreneurial intentions towards the identification of investment opportunity in entrepreneurship creation. This study used simple random sampling of undergraduates students of Covenant University. Structural equation modeling was used to validate the proposed model while multiple regression was used test the hypothesis raised in the study. The theoretical and managerial implications of the results were discussed. This study contributes to the body of knowledge in theory building in entrepreneurship. Recommendations were made for policy and decision makers in entrepreneurship

Follow the leader or the pack? Regulatory focus and academic entrepreneurial intentions

Drawing on the academic entrepreneurship and regulatory focus theory literature, and applying a multilevel per- spective, this paper examines why university academics intend to engage in formal (spin-off or start-up companies and licensing university research) or informal (collaborative research, contract research, continuous professional development, and contract consulting) commercialization activities and the role local contextual factors, in partic- ular leaders and work-group colleagues (peers), play in their commercialization choices. Based on a survey of 395 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) academics working in 14 Scottish universities, the research findings suggest that an individual’s chronic regulatory focus has a direct effect on their formal and informal commercialization intent. The results reveal that the stronger an individual’s chronic promotion focus the stronger their formal and informal commercialization intentions and a stronger individual chronic prevention focus leads to weaker intentions to engage in informal commercialization. In addition, when contextual interaction effects are considered, leaders and workplace colleagues have different influences on commercialization intent. On the one hand, promotion-focused leaders can strengthen and prevention-focused leaders can under certain cir- cumstances weaken a promotion-focused academic’s formal commercialization intent. On the other hand, the level of workplace colleague engagement, acting as a reference point, strengthens not only promotion-focused academ- ics’ intent to engage in formal commercialization activities, but also prevention-focused academics’ corresponding informal commercialization intent. As such, universities should consider the appointment of leaders who are strong role models and have a track record in formal and/or informal commercialization activities and also con- sider the importance workplace colleagues have on moderating an academic’s intention to engage in different forms of commercialization activities

Participation in adult education: attitude and barriers.

In this paper, we control the intention theory of Fishbein and Ajzen (1980) for the participation in an adult education course. Based on the Flemish Eurostat Adult Education Survey, we reveal that participants in adult education have a more positive attitude towards learning and that within the group of non-participants, those who formulate an intention to participate score higher on attitude scales than non-participants without intention. The main reasons for non-participation are related to time squeeze and although the model of Fishbein and Ajzen (1980) stresses the importance of attitude, barriers are more than the mask of a poor attitude. Education policy and practice should therefore help adults in overcoming these obstacles

Evaluating candidate reactions to selection practices using organisational justice theory

Objectives: This study aimed to examine candidate reactions to selection practices in postgraduate medical training using organisational justice theory. Methods: We carried out three independent cross-sectional studies using samples from three consecutive annual recruitment rounds. Data were gathered from candidates applying for entry into UK general practice (GP) training during 2007, 2008 and 2009. Participants completed an evaluation questionnaire immediately after the short-listing stage and after the selection centre (interview) stage. Participants were doctors applying for GP training in the UK. Main outcome measures were participants’ evaluations of the selection methods and perceptions of the overall fairness of each selection stage (short-listing and selection centre). Results: A total of 23 855 evaluation questionnaires were completed (6893 in 2007, 10 497 in 2008 and 6465 in 2009). Absolute levels of perceptions of fairness of all the selection methods at both the short-listing and selection centre stages were consistently high over the 3 years. Similarly, all selection methods were considered to be job-related by candidates. However, in general, candidates considered the selection centre stage to be significantly fairer than the short-listing stage. Of all the selection methods, the simulated patient consultation completed at the selection centre stage was rated as the most job-relevant. Conclusions: This is the first study to use a model of organisational justice theory to evaluate candidate reactions during selection into postgraduate specialty training. The high-fidelity selection methods are consistently viewed as more job-relevant and fairer by candidates. This has important implications for the design of recruitment systems for all specialties and, potentially, for medical school admissions. Using this approach, recruiters can systematically compare perceptions of the fairness and job relevance of various selection methods

The Effects of Corruption in Entrepreneurial Ecosystems on Entrepreneurial Intentions

Although researchers have identified corruption as a factor capable of affecting the entrepreneurial ecosystem at the national level of analysis, scholars have reported conflicting results regarding the exact nature of the relationship between corruption and entrepreneurial intentions. This paper formulates some propositions about the complex relationship between corruption and entrepreneurship at different levels of analysis and it suggests and explores the socio-cultural consequences of such domains' interactions. Finally, the slippery-slope effect will be discussed as an intra-individual psychological mechanism that could explain why even morally-engaged people might replicate corrupt behaviors. The limitations of this work, and its implications for future researchers and for government policies will be analyzed

The effects of entrepreneurship education

Entrepreneurship education ranks high on policy agendas in Europe and the US, but little research is available to assess its impact. To help close this gap we investigate whether entrepreneurship education a?ects intentions to be entrepreneurial uniformly or whether it leads to greater sorting of students. The latter can reduce the average intention to be entrepreneurial and yet be socially beneficial. This paper provides a model of learning in which entrepreneurship education generates signals to students. Drawing on the signals, students evaluate their aptitude for entrepreneurial tasks. The model is tested using data from a compulsory entrepreneurship course. Using ex ante and ex post survey responses from students, we find that intentions to found decline somewhat although the course has significant positive e?ects on students’ self-assessed entrepreneurial skills. The empirical analysis supports the hypothesis that students receive informative signals and learn about their entrepreneurial aptitude. We outline implications for educators and public policy

Feasibility of preconception screening for thalassaemia in Indonesia: exploring the opinion of Javanese mothers

Background. Thalassaemia has become a major public health issue in Indonesia. It has been estimated that up to 10% of the population carries a gene associated with beta-thalassaemia. Currently, there is no formal recommendation for thalassaemia screening. This study aimed to explore awareness of thalassaemia, and to explore attitudes regarding carrier testing among Javanese mothers. Methods. A quantitative questionnaire, designed using constructs of the Theory of Planned Behaviour, was applied cross-sectionally. Results. Out of 191 mothers who were invited, 180 agreed to participate (RR 94%), of whom 74 had a child affected with thalassaemia. Both attitudes towards receiving information about thalassaemia, and attitudes towards carrier testing were very positive. Awareness of thalassaemia was poor. Mothers, both those with and without an affected child, had barely heard of thalassaemia, nor of carrier testing. However, all mothers, including those with an affected child expressed high levels of interest in carrier testing. Respondents did not perceive that they had any control over carrier testing, and feared stigmatization and being discriminated against if their carrier status was identified. Attitudes towards carrier testing explained 23% of future reproductive intentions, in addition to perceived stigmatization, education level and ‘mother’s age’ (R2 0.44; p 0.001). Conclusion. Responding mothers expressed high levels of interest in receiving information on both thalassaemia and carrier testing. The less educated and the more deprived they were, the keener they were to receive this information. Overall, awareness of thalassaemia was low. Even mothers with affected children seemed unaware of the inheritance pattern and the recurrent risk of having an affected child in a subsequent pregnancy, showing the need for genetic counselling in Indonesia. It is therefore recommended not only to raise awareness about thalassaemia, but to improve the education of healthcare professionals as well. Keywords: thalassaemia; carrier screening; Javanese mothers; genetic awareness; Theory of Planned Behaviour (TpB); awareness; Indonesi

Social Mental Shaping: Modelling the Impact of Sociality on Autonomous Agents' Mental States

This paper presents a framework that captures how the social nature of agents that are situated in a multi-agent environment impacts upon their individual mental states. Roles and relationships provide an abstraction upon which we develop the notion of social mental shaping. This allows us to extend the standard Belief-Desire-Intention model to account for how common social phenomena (e.g. cooperation, collaborative problem-solving and negotiation) can be integrated into a unified theoretical perspective that reflects a fully explicated model of the autonomous agent's mental state