Relationship between psychological characteristics and entrepreneurial inclination: a case study of students at university tun abdul razak (unitar)

TLDR: In this article, the degree to which UNITAR students are inclined towards entrepreneurship was investigated and the relationship between certain psychological characteristics and entrepreneurial inclination was investigated in Malaysia, where 361 students from three faculties at both graduate and undergraduate levels were surveyed to examine their entrepreneurial inclination.

Abstract: Interest in entrepreneurship is intense in many parts of the world. For developed economies, entrepreneurial activity (new venture formation) is a means of revitalizing economy, a way of coping with unemployment problems, a potential catalyst and incubator for technological progress, product and market innovation. For economies of developing countries, entrepreneurship is seen as an engine of economic progress, job creation and social adjustment. Thus, small business growth/new business formation is widely encouraged by national economic policies to stimulate economic growth and wealth creation. As Malaysia entered the twenty first century, interest and concerns on the subject of entrepreneurship heightened among others by the government’s enormous funding allocation towards the promotion of entrepreneurship especially for small and medium enterprises, the issue of graduate unemployment which has risen to approximately sixty thousand (60,000) according to a Bernama report and the attitude of current graduates who are seen to be too pampered and dependent on the government and private organizations for employment. It is time to further examine whether our existing university students are inclined towards entrepreneurship. This study investigates the degree to which UNITAR students are inclined towards entrepreneurship. 361 students from three faculties at both graduate and undergraduate levels were surveyed to examine their entrepreneurial inclination and also to look into the relationship between certain psychological characteristics and entrepreneurial inclination. Further analysis is reported and recommendation for future research has been put forth in this paper.