Does University business incubator boot the Entrepreneurial Intention and Entrepreneurial Decision among students: A case study in Vietnam

Abstract

Boosting entrepreneurial intention (EI) and entrepreneurial decision (ED) among Vietnamese students is a hot topic with many researchers and policymakers. Based on the TPB theory, this study analyzes factors influencing students' EI and ED. It is emphasized that EI plays a mediating role between entrepreneurial self-efficacy (ESE), entrepreneurial education (EE), entrepreneurial support policy (ESP), and ED. In addition, university business incubators play a moderating role between ESE and EI and between EI and ED. A data set of 295 students was collected in most universities in Vietnam, and the Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) model was used for the data analysis. The study outcomes demonstrated that all suggested factors positively impacted EI and ED, except that students with good ESE would skip the EI phase and go straight to ED. In other words, the mediating role of EI could have been better, even when University business incubators appeared. Another interesting result was that University business incubators performed better in the EI and ED relationship than ESE and EI. The research results provide scientific proof for the university and policymakers to build entrepreneurial training programs, ESP, and improve UBI's operation, promoting entrepreneurship among students.