The Impact of Business Attitude on Entrepreneurial Behavior in Postgraduate Students: A Cross-sectional Study During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Background: Entrepreneurship and business behavior are of great significance in developing countries, such as Iran, due to the unemployment crisis. Today's economic status and population composition have propelled everyone to find effective solutions in the economic arena. Therefore, appropriate educational models for students and programs to encourage students to turn to entrepreneurship and create new businesses are vital. Objectives: The present study aimed to determine the impact of business attitude on entrepreneurial behavior in postgraduate students. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on the postgraduate students of Qazvin University of Medical Sciences in 2021. Data were collected using the standard questionnaires of Aution et al. and Leon Dice Zamptakis and Vasilis Mustakis. Data analysis was performed in the R software version 4.0.4 using Spearman’s or Pearson’s correlation-coefficient and multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA). Results: The mean age of the participants was 28.17 ± 6.297 years. Pearson’s correlation-coefficient indicated a significant, inverse correlation between age and attitudes toward competitiveness and entrepreneurial culture (r = -0.210; P = 0.002 and r = -0.177; P = 0.01, respectively). In addition, the results of multiple linear regression analysis showed that the attitude to business had a significant, inverse effect on entrepreneurial behavior (r = -0.259; P < 0.001). Conclusions: According to the results, students' unpreparedness for self-employment activities highlights the need for changing the attitude of postgraduate students in this regard by explaining the prevalence of the COVID-19. Due to the outbreak of the disease, numerous startups and personal businesses were shut down. Therefore, students are mostly reluctant to become involved in entrepreneurial activities despite their business attitude.