UNDERGRADUATES’ ENTREPRENEURIAL BEHAVIOUR AND INTENTIONS: THE ROLE OF BIOGRAPHICAL MEDIATORS

Abstract

AbstarctThis paper examines the roles of biographical mediators on Undergraduates’entrepreneurial behaviour and intentions. A sample of five hundred and seventy-nine(579) undergraduates randomly selected from three universities (1 Federal, 1 State, and 1private University respectively) in Ogun State, Nigeria took part in this study. The maininstrument used for the collection of data was the Entrepreneurial Intention Questionnaire(EIQ) developed by Liñán & Chen, (2006). Two (2) research questions were raised andanswered. Pearson’s Product Movement Correlation Statistical Procedure and multipleregressions analysis (stepwise) was used to analyses the data collected. Findings revealedthat all the demographic variables are potent factors to the prediction of undergraduates’entrepreneurial attitude and intentions (F (7, 571) = 18.431; P < 0.05). Also, age has thehighest beta value (.167); followed by socio-economic status of the parents, occupationalstatus of parents (.122); educational status (.116); and lastly by gender (.898) to theprediction of undergraduates’ entrepreneurial attitude and intentions. The results alsoshowed that there were statistically significant differences in undergraduates’entrepreneurial attitude and intentions based on (t = 2.899) and school type (t = 3.719);but there was no statistically significant gender difference (t = 1.897). It is therefore,recommended that entrepreneurial education should not just be incorporated into allschool curricula from primary to tertiary to enhance students’ intention and attitudetowards entrepreneurship; but should also be properly tailored to the needs and yearningsof Nigerians. Undergraduates, entrepreneurial intentions and behaviour, socio-economicstatus, age, gender, educational status, school type.