Entrepreneurial intention of Bangladeshi students: impact of individual and contextual factors

This study has investigated the extent to which individual and contextual factors determine the entrepreneurial intention in Bangladesh. Also, this study examined the comparative impact of both individual and contextual factors on entrepreneurial intentions. Sample data (n = 270) have been collected through using a survey questionnaire from a renowned public university of Bangladesh. This study has applied both correlation analysis and hierarchical regression for testing the hypotheses. Total eight hypotheses are tested to examine the influence of seven independent variables on entrepreneurial intentions, in which six factors have been found as significant predictors of entrepreneurial intentions. The correlation analysis revealed that risk-taking, locus of control, self-efficacy, and job autonomy are significantly correlated with entrepreneurial intention at 5% significance level. The regression result indicated that individual factors such as risk-taking, locus of control, self-efficacy, and job autonomy and contextual factors such as social networks and university educational program have positive effect on entrepreneurial intention. The study also found out that individual factors have more influence on entrepreneurial intentions than contextual variables. This paper also offers some implications for academic scholars.