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Personality and social support as determinants of entrepreneurial intention. Gender differences in Italy

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  • Monica Molino
  • Valentina Dolce
  • Claudio Giovanni Cortese
  • Chiara Ghislieri

Abstract

The interest in the promotion of entrepreneurship is significantly increasing, particularly in those countries, such as Italy, that suffered during the recent great economic recession and subsequently needed to revitalize their economy. Entrepreneurial intention (EI) is a crucial stage in the entrepreneurial process and represents the basis for consequential entrepreneurial actions. Several research projects have sought to understand the antecedents of EI. This study, using a situational approach, has investigated the personal and contextual determinants of EI, exploring gender differences. In particular, the mediational role of general self-efficacy between internal locus of control (LoC), self-regulation, and support from family and friends, on the one hand, and EI, on the other hand, has been investigated. The study involved a sample of 658 Italian participants, of which 319 were male and 339 were female. Data were collected with a self-report on-line questionnaire and analysed with SPSS 23 and Mplus 7 to test a multi-group structural equation model. The results showed that self-efficacy totally mediated the relationship between internal LoC, self-regulation and EI. Moreover, it partially mediated the relationship between support from family and friends and EI. All the relations were significant for both men and women; however, our findings highlighted a stronger relationship between self-efficacy and EI for men, and between support from family and friends and both self-efficacy and EI for women. Findings highlighted the role of contextual characteristics in addition to personal ones in influencing EI and confirmed the key mediational function of self-efficacy. As for gender, results suggested that differences between men and women in relation to the entrepreneur role still exist. Practical implications for trainers and educators are discussed.

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  • Monica Molino & Valentina Dolce & Claudio Giovanni Cortese & Chiara Ghislieri, 2018. "Personality and social support as determinants of entrepreneurial intention. Gender differences in Italy," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(6), pages 1-19, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:plo:pone00:0199924
    DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0199924
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    1. Ana Iolanda Vodă & Alina-Petronela Haller & Alexandru Anichiti & Gina Ionela Butnaru, 2020. "Testing Entrepreneurial Intention Determinants in Post-Transition Economies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(24), pages 1-26, December.
    2. Angelo Rosa, 2023. "Organizational Training in Startups: The Incubators Perspective in Turbulent Times," International Journal of Business and Management, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 18(4), pages 1-1, August.
    3. Samir Marwan Hammami & Tareq Muhammad Alhousary & Ahmad Taha Kahwaji & Syed Ahsan Jamil, 2022. "The status quo of omani female entrepreneurs: a story of multidimensional success factors," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 56(4), pages 2063-2089, August.
    4. Murat Yalcintas & Oyk㜠Iyigãœn & Gokhan Karabulut, 2023. "Personal Characteristics And Intention For Entrepreneurship," The Singapore Economic Review (SER), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 68(02), pages 539-561.
    5. Nabil Al-Qadasi & Gongyi Zhang & Ibrahim Al-Jubari, 2021. "Attitude of youth towards self-employment: Evidence from university students in Yemen," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(9), pages 1-20, September.
    6. Rosy Musumeci & Chiara Ghislieri, 2020. "Some Voices from Italian Youth on Well-Being: How to Cope with Job Insecurity?," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-19, April.
    7. Mai, Nhat Chi, 2022. "What Drives Internet Entrepreneurial Intention to Use Technology Products? An Investigation of Technology Product Imagination Disposition, Social Support, and Motivation," OSF Preprints hr4sm, Center for Open Science.

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