Search results

Drawing on the entrepreneurial event model (EEM), entrepreneurship education programs (EEPs) and perceived contextual support (adapted from social cognitive career theory) and perceived contextual barriers, this study aims to unravel the differences in entrepreneurial activity among university students in higher education institutes in two diverse Asian countries.

This study uses a cross-sectional survey-based data collection technique using paper and electronic methods. The study analyzes data using descriptive statistics, principal component analysis, reliability analysis and logistic regression analysis via SPSS version 25.

The findings show the positive influence of perceived desirability and feasibility on entrepreneurial intentions; however, the stronger desirability was found among university students in China and stronger feasibility toward entrepreneurial intentions among Pakistani students. The study reveals the negative significant influence of EEPs on entrepreneurial intentions, and this finding is consistent across both samples. Furthermore, the findings show that university students in both countries show insignificant impact of perceived contextual support in predicting entrepreneurial intentions. Finally, the study confirms the negative influence of perceived barriers on entrepreneurial intentions in both contexts.

This study provides differences in entrepreneurial activity by combing EEM, EEPs, perceived contextual support and barriers in two diverse Asian countries, and to the best of author’s knowledge, no previous study considered these factors in a single framework. Furthermore, the findings of the study enrich existing literature and also provide policy recommendations for practitioners.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the consequences of the economic shock caused by the COVID-19 pandemic on the entrepreneurial intentions of academic students. In addition, this research examined whether the pandemic reinforces the tendency to operate new businesses or represents a barrier to the pursuit of entrepreneurial opportunities.

This study was conducted with a sample of university students. Risk perception and contextual variables were measured. Information was collected from 308 university students enrolled at the University of Sfax (Tunisia) who participated by responding to a structured questionnaire distributed in electronic form by email.

The results show that university students perceive higher levels of personal entrepreneurial risk than other types of entrepreneurial risks (financial risk and social risk). Perceived financial risk only has a significant effect on entrepreneurial intention for students who view the COVID-19 crisis as an opportunity. Regarding perceived contextual support, only perceived educational support has a significant and positive effect on entrepreneurial intention.

The results have important practical implications for identifying entrepreneurial intentions. They indicate that universities have an essential role in providing educational support for students by implementing awareness and training programs for entrepreneurship. Furthermore, they reveal the differentiated effect of the COVID-19 crisis on the risk perceptions of participants according to their views of the crisis as a threat or as an opportunity.

This is one of few studies that have examined the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic (positive or negative) on the entrepreneurial intention of academic students.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of a prolonged economic recession on the entrepreneurial intentions of young people (university students) distinguishing between propensity to start a new business (i.e. degree of interest in entrepreneurship) and perceived likelihood of becoming an entrepreneur (i.e. probability to start a business in the future). Furthermore this study verifies if the recession strengthens the orientation to exploit new market opportunities, or simply supports self-employment objectives.

Entrepreneurial intention was measured in terms of propensity to start a new business and perceived likelihood of becoming an entrepreneur. Psychosocial and economic variables were measured as well. Information was gathered through questionnaires distributed in both electronic and paper-and-pencil form to a sample of 3,684 Italian University students enrolled in 12 different faculties.

First, this study found that while the perception of the economic crisis as an obstacle to new business creation does not impact on the propensity toward entrepreneurship, it has a negative and highly significant impact on the likelihood to start a business. Second, when a distinction is made between opportunity- and necessity-based types, results show that while for the latter the crisis impacts only on the perceived likelihood to become an entrepreneur, for the former it affects both dimensions of entrepreneurship, i.e., both propensity and perceived likelihood. Moreover, neither family support nor economic institutions are perceived as relevant in sustaining entrepreneurial intentions. On the contrary, the university is considered as a key support entity.

Reliance on cross-sectional questionnaires instead of an experimental design imposes caution about the causal relationships between predictors and entrepreneurial intent.

The present paper is one of the few studies concerning the influence of rapid worsening of external economic context (severe recession) on the entrepreneurial intent.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the degree to which employees’ proactive behavior contributes to innovation performance in firms operating in high-technology sectors. Despite the benefits of these behaviors for individuals and organizations, few studies have analyzed the contextual conditions that enable firms to capture their value in order to improve innovation performance. Drawing on the interactionist perspective, the authors also examine the extent to which informal and formal controls, such as perceived support for innovation and innovation process formalization, can facilitate the contribution of proactive behaviors to improve innovation performance (product and process innovation).

Based on an empirical study with a sample of 173 firms operating in chemical and information technology service sectors, hierarchical regression analysis was used to test the relationship between employees’ proactive behavior and innovation performance, and the moderating effects of informal and formal controls.

The results reveal a positive and significant association between proactive behaviors and product and process innovation performance. Both control mechanisms positively moderate the association between proactive behavior and product innovation, but no moderating role was found for process innovation. Moreover, rather than inhibiting innovation performance, innovation process formalization is positively associated with innovation. More specifically, a curvilinear relationship was found, which implies that when the level of formalization is high, it is able to improve product and process innovation.

The findings suggest that managers should consider proactive behavior in selection processes and performance management, and should cultivate a climate to support innovation and establish formal controls for innovation as a way to channel employees’ initiatives into product innovation.

This study contributes to the theoretical and managerial understanding of the extent to which proactive employees and organizational controls are able to enhance innovation in a technologically dynamic context.

Drawing on a motivational model of proactive behavior, this study theorizes that employment status, reflective moral attentiveness (RMA), and organization-based self-esteem (OBSE) constitute the can-do, reason-to, and energized-to motivational states, which interact to induce organizational citizenship behavior toward the environment (OCB-E).

The authors conducted random coefficient modeling (RCM) analysis with a multisource, time-lagged data set collected from 235 employees in Chinese firms.

This RCM analysis found that more OCB-E resulted from standard employees with higher levels of RMA and OBSE.

The value of this research lies in understanding of the antecedents of green behavior at the individual level by identifying specific motivational states and highlighting the coexistence of motivational states in predicting OCB-E. These findings provide new insight into the theory of developing and managing green OCB performers in today's workplace characterized by workforce mixing.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how gamification can influence entrepreneurial intentions (EI) of a group of users of an online platform provided by a private company.

A quantitative research strategy was used with a sample of 220 respondents. These respondents were tested before and after the gamification experience.

Main findings support literature suggesting a clear effect of attitudes towards behaviour and perceived behavioural control on EI, in line with the theory of planned behaviour (TPB). Once the basic assumptions of TPB were confirmed, the authors tested the effects of gamification comparing before and after results. Main findings highlight an increase of these effects after the gamification experience, aligned with the self-determination theory.

These findings suggest that gamification is able to influence entrepreneurial behaviours. This contributes to both companies and educators’ knowledge on training for EI with gamification and the use of online platforms to this effect. Recommendations are provided.

This is the first study that investigates the impact of gamification on EI and how gamification can influence the different relationships between the antecedents of EI.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between high-performance HR practices (HPHRPs), psychological climate (PC), work engagement (WE) and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) among IT professionals. This study further intends to provide a framework to understand and predict factors affecting organizational citizenship performance in the Indian IT sector.

The analysis is based on a sample of 464 IT employees working in 29 information-intensive global organizations, and the statistical method employed is structural equation modeling.

The results of the present study demonstrated the significance of employees’ perceptions of PC through which HPHRPs can boost employees’ WE, which, in turn, has come out to be the principal mechanism through which HPHRPs and PC have impact on OCBs.

The results have established a platform where HR managers can be motivated to open up new avenues to employees where they can be psychologically involved in work roles and feel highly motivated to bring their good spirits at the workplace in order to benefit the organization at large.

This research explores the changing dynamics of Indian business scenario in the IT context. IT professionals may perceive and react differently to the HR system in the organization and have higher expectations of congenial working conditions that enhance their capability to employ personal skills and resources in the realization of organizational goals. Thus, the study tries to tap their experiences and perceptions and map their performances in the organization.

Expatriate mobility is increasing globally, in volume and diversity. A growing element of this overall increase has been the greater share of self-initiated expatriates (SIEs) working outside their home countries. In some host countries, SIEs make up a majority of the overall workforce. The purpose of this paper is to examine the determinants of innovative work behavior (IWB) of SIEs in one such country. Drawing upon leader-member exchange (LMX) theory and the conceptual framework of the resource-based view of career capital, the authors’ examine the influences of LMX, perceived innovation-reward, job knowledge and contextual knowledge on SIEs’ IWB.

The paper is based on the analysis of survey results from 229 SIEs based in the United Arab Emirates. The authors use hierarchal regression and an SPSS macro to assess the significance of the interaction effects.

Results indicate significant direct effects for LMX and perceived innovation-reward on SIEs’ IWB. Results also reveal significant interaction effects suggesting that the relationship between LMX and SIEs’ IWB is stronger when job knowledge is high and when reward for innovation is high.

This is the first study to examine the determinants of SIE’s IWB. This study investigates the effect of LMX, career capital differences (job knowledge and contextual knowledge) and perceived innovation-reward on SIEs’ IWB. This is also the first study to examine the interaction effects of LMX and individual differences (job knowledge and contextual knowledge) on SIEs’ IWB.