Youth entrepreneurial intentions: an integrated model of individual and contextual factors

Purpose The purpose of this study is to identify factors instrumental in developing entrepreneurial intentions among youth. Although, numerous studies have been conducted focusing on entrepreneurship intention, however, this study attempts to provide an integrated model by means of analyzing the impact of internal (personal) and external (environmental) factors in developing entrepreneurial intentions. Design/methodology/approach This cross-sectional study is based on primary and secondary data. A sample of 358 respondents belonging to the age group of 21-25 years from various universities and colleges in Kashmir participated in the study. Primary data collection was done using self-administered questionnaires. A purposive sampling approach was used to identify respondents for the current study. Structural equation modeling has been used for testing hypotheses besides other statistical methods and techniques. Findings The study identifies three important antecedents of entrepreneurship intentions, namely, personal competencies, contextual factors and entrepreneurial exposure and tests the relationships using path analysis. It further suggests that there exists a significant relationship between personal competencies, entrepreneurial exposure, contextual elements and entrepreneurial intention. Originality/value The paper presents an integrated and comprehensive model of entrepreneurial intentions discussing important antecedents instrumental in developing entrepreneurship intentions among youth considering both personal and environmental factors. It is, therefore, an important contribution toward entrepreneurship literature and of interest to different policymakers and institutions related to entrepreneurship.