Examining prison entrepreneurship programs, self-efficacy and entrepreneurial resilience as drivers for prisoners' entrepreneurial intentions

Abstract

PurposeEx-prisoners often experience negative stigma from society, making it difficult to find employment upon release. Prison institutions play an active role in building character and improving prisoners' skills by providing various empowerment programs to increase opportunities for their economic potential. However, these programs are considered not optimal in increasing the entrepreneurial intentions of prisoners. This study aims to identify the effects of prison entrepreneurship programs, entrepreneurial resilience and self-efficacy as drivers in increasing prisoners' entrepreneurial intentions. This study also examines the effect of these variables focusing on prisoners with neither entrepreneurial experience nor entrepreneurial training.Design/methodology/approachThis study deployed a quantitative method by distributing a questionnaire to prisoners involved in talent and skill development activities (called BIMKER, an abbreviation in Indonesian, which means Work Guidance), a compulsory program provided by prison institutions. A total of 204 prisoners, including 70 with no entrepreneurial experience, completed the research questionnaire in one of the prison institutions in Indonesia. Partial least sequential-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used as the analytical technique.FindingsThe study findings show that the prison entrepreneurship program has not been able to influence prisoners' entrepreneurial intentions directly. However, the prison entrepreneurship program has a positive and significant effect on increasing prisoners' self-efficacy and entrepreneurial resilience that ultimately encourages the emergence of entrepreneurial intentions. Entrepreneurial resilience was found not to affect entrepreneurial intentions for prisoners with no entrepreneurial experience and who have never attended entrepreneurship training.Originality/valueThis study identifies the drivers of prisoners' entrepreneurial intentions, including prison entrepreneurship programs, self-efficacy and entrepreneurial resilience. These can be used as references to build understanding at the theoretical level and can be adopted practically. This study expands the social cognitive theory (SCT) and entrepreneurial intention models (EIMs) by adding new insights into the context of prison entrepreneurship that underline the potential of prisoners engaging in entrepreneurship, once released, to expand opportunities, learning and employment. This study highlights the importance of implementing prison entrepreneurship programs to reduce crime, recidivism rates, poverty and inequality.