Verifying antecedents affecting entrepreneurial intention among business students in higher education the case of vietnam national university hanoi international school

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

GRADUATION PROJECT

VERIFYING ANTECEDENTS AFFECTING ENTREPRENEURIAL INTENTION
AMONG BUSINESS STUDENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION: THE CASE OF
VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY HANOI- INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

Student’s name: Le Thi Mo

Hanoi – Year 2020


VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

GRADUATION PROJECT

VERIFYING ANTECEDENTS AFFECTING ENTREPRENEURIAL INTENTION
AMONG BUSINESS STUDENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION: THE CASE OF
VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY HANOI- INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

SUPERVISOR: MBA. Pham Huong Trang
STUDENT: Le Thi Mo
STUDENT ID: 16071082
COHORT: QH-2016
MAJOR: International Business

Hanoi – Year 2020

LETTER OF DECLARATION

I hereby declare that the Graduation Project: “Verifying antecedents affecting
entrepreneurial intention among business students in higher education: The case of
Vietnam National University Hanoi - International School” is the results of my own
research and has never been published in any work of others. During the
implementation process of this project, I have seriously taken research ethics; all
findings of this projects are results of my own research and surveys; all references
in this project are clearly cited according to regulations.
I take full responsibity for the fidelity of the number and data and other
contents of my graduation project.

Hanoi, 25th May 2020
Student,
Mo
Le Thi Mo


ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

First and foremost, I would like to express my deep and sincere gratitude to my
advisor MBA. Pham Huong Trang who inspired me to do the thesis, guided me how
to do make it done properly.
I would like to express my gratitude to all lecturers and professors at Vietnam
National University Hanoi – International School, who gave me many practical
knowledge in all four academic years. That helped me a lot when I conducted this
research.
Besides, I also would like to say thank you to all participants who helped me
answering the questionnaire and getting the data.

I really thank to all people helping me to finish this thesis research.
Finally, I wish all the best will come to my professor and all lecturers at Vietnam
National University- International School. Wish everyone more happiness in life
and more success in career.
Thank you all very much !
Student,
Le Thi Mo


TABLE OF CONTENT
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION .............................................................................. 2
1.1. Problem background ..................................................................................... 2
1.2. Research Objective ....................................................................................... 4
1.3. Research Scope ............................................................................................. 4
1.4. Research Questionnaire ................................................................................ 4
1.5. Research Structure ........................................................................................ 4
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW .................................................................. 6
2.1. Entrepreneur and entrepreneurship ............................................................... 6
2.2. Entrepreneurial intention .............................................................................. 7
2.3. Previous model about entrepreneurial intention ........................................... 8
2.4. Literature Gaps ............................................................................................. 9
CHAPTER 3: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK AND HYPOTHESIS................. 12
3.1. Fundamental model .................................................................................... 12
3.1.1. Theory of Reasoned Actions (TRA) .................................................... 12
3.1.2. Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) ..................................................... 13
3.2. Research development model and hypothesis ............................................ 15
3.2.1. Attitude ................................................................................................ 15
3.2.3. Subjective norms.................................................................................. 18
3.2.4. Entrepreneurial self-efficacy ............................................................... 18
3.2.5. Risk- taking propensity ........................................................................ 20

3.2.6. University environment ....................................................................... 21
3.2.7. Entrepreneuship education ................................................................... 22
3.2.8. Perceived family and social support .................................................... 23
CHAPTER 4: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ..................................................... 25
4.1. Research Process ........................................................................................ 25
4.2. Data Collection and Sampling .................................................................... 26
4.3. Designing Questionnaire ............................................................................ 27
4.4. Analyzing Data Plan ................................................................................... 32


CHAPTER 5: DATA ANALYSIS .......................................................................... 36
5.1. Data Description ......................................................................................... 36
5.2. Reliability Analysis .................................................................................... 42
5.2.1. Reliability of Entrepreneurial intention- EI scale ................................ 42
5.2.2. Reliability of Atitude toward entrepreneurship – ATE scale .............. 44
5.2.3. Reliability of Perceived Behavioral Control – PBC scale ................... 45
5.2.4. Reliability of Subjective Norms – SN scale ........................................ 46
5.2.5. Reliability of Entrepreneurial self-efficacy ......................................... 47
5.2.6. Reliability of Risk-taking propensity –RTP scale ............................... 48
5.2.7. Reliability of University Environment – UE scale .............................. 49
5.2.8. Reliability of Entrepreneuship education – EE scale .......................... 50
5.2.9. Reliability of Perceived family support- PFS scale ............................. 51
5.3. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) ............................................................ 52
5.4. Composite reliability ,Convergent Validity, Discriminant Validity .......... 58
5.5. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) ......................................................... 59
5.6. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) and hypothesis testing .................... 62
5.6.1. Structural Equation Modeling .............................................................. 62
5.6.2. Hypothesis testing ................................................................................ 65
5.7. Mediation Analysis ..................................................................................... 68
5.8. BOOTSTAP................................................................................................ 69

5.9. T- TEST , ANOVA .................................................................................... 69
5.9.1. Independent Sample T Test ................................................................. 69
5.9.2. ANOVA ............................................................................................... 71
CHAPTER 6 : CONCLUSION ............................................................................... 73
6.1. Conclusion and discussion.......................................................................... 73
6.2. Research contribution ................................................................................. 77
6.3. Practical contribution .................................................................................. 77
6.4. Limitations and future research .................................................................. 78
6.4.1. Limitations ........................................................................................... 78


6.4.2. Future research ..................................................................................... 78
REFERENCES ......................................................................................................... 80
APPENDIX 1: QUESTIONNAIRE ......................................................................... 90
APPENDIX 2: QUESTIONNAIRE ......................................................................... 97


TABLE OF NOTATIONS AND ABBREVIATIONS

Abbreviation

Meaning

AC

Accounting, Analysis, and Auditing

ATE

Attitudes towards entrepreneurship

CFA

Confirmatory Factor Analysis.

EE

Entrepreneurship education

EFA

Exploratory analysis

EI

Entrepreneur intention

ESE

Entrepreneurial self-efficacy

IB

International Business

MIS

Management Information Systems

PBC

Perceived behavioral control

PFS

Perceived family and social support

RTP

Risk- taking propensity

SEM

Structural equation modeling

SN

Subjective norms

SPSS

Statistical Package for Social Sciences

TPB

Theory of Planned Behaviour

TRA

Theory of Reasoned Action

UE

University environment

VNU – IS

Vietnam National University Hanoi- International Scool


LIST OF TABLE
Table 3.1 Some researches about entrepreneurial intention .....................................16
Table 4.1 Summary about research method ..............................................................26
Table 4.2. Likert scale of agreement extent ..............................................................27
Table 4.3 Mesuring items for questionnaire .............................................................27
Table 4.4 Encoded items for data testing ..................................................................32
Table 5.1Descriptive Statistics ..................................................................................36
Table 5.2 Reliablity statistics of EI scale ..................................................................42
Table 5.3Reliablity statistics of EI scale after remove EI4 .......................................43
Table 5.4 Reliablity statistics of ATE scale ..............................................................44
Table 5.5Reliablity statistics of ATE scale ...............................................................45
Table 5.6 Reliablity statistics of ATE scale after remove PBC1, PBC5 ..................45
Table 5.7Reliablity statistics of SN scale ..................................................................46
Table 5.8 Reliablity statistics of SN scale .................................................................47
Table 5.9 Reliablity statistics of ESE scale after remove ESE5 ...............................48
Table 5.10 Reliablity statistics of RTP scale ............................................................48
Table 5.11. Realiblity statistics of UE scale .............................................................49
Table 5.12 Reliablity statistics of EE scale ...............................................................50
Table 5.13 Reliablity statistics of PFS scale .............................................................51
Table 5.14 Summary of reliability scale ...................................................................51

Table 5.15 KMO and Bartlett's Test .........................................................................52
Table 5.16 Total variance explained .........................................................................53
Table 5.17 Pattern Matrix .........................................................................................54
Table 5.18 KMO and Bartlett's Test after remove EE3 ............................................55
Table 5.19 Pattern matrix after remove EE3 .............................................................56
Table 5.20 Summary about factors after applying EFA ..........................................57
Table 5.21 Composite reliability, average variance extracted , descriminant value.58
Table 5.22 Goodness-of-fit indices for the measurement model ..............................59
Table 5.23 Goodness-of-Fit Indices for the mesurement model ...............................61


Table 5.24 Regression weights .................................................................................64
Table 5.25 Standardized regression weights .............................................................64
Table 5.26 Goodness-of-Fit Indices for the structual model ....................................65
Table 5.27 Results for the hypotheses testing ...........................................................66
Table 5.28. Direct, indirect and total effects for variables ........................................68
Table 5.29 Analysis results of Bootstap ....................................................................69
Table 5.30 Veryfy differences in the entrepreneurial intention by gender ...............70
Table 5.31 Veryfy differences in the entrepreneurial intention by year of school ...71
Table 5.32 Veryfy differences in the entrepreneurial intent by major at university .72
Table 6.1. Some activities and subjects about entrepreneuship in VNU-IS .............74
Table 6.2 Some subjects about entrepreneurship in VNU-IS ...................................74


LIST OF CHARTS AND FIGURE
Figure 3.1. Theory of Reasoned Actions ................................................................. 12
Figure 3.2. Theory of Planned Behavior .................................................................. 13
Figure 3.3. Proposed research model ....................................................................... 15
Figure 4.1. Research process proposed by the author .............................................. 25
Figure 5.1. Gender Distribution ............................................................................... 38

Figure 5.2. Class level of students ........................................................................... 38
Figure 5.3. The major of students ............................................................................ 39
Figure 5.4. Education level of parents ..................................................................... 40
Figure 5.5 Occupation of parents ............................................................................. 41
Figure 5.6 Monthly Income...................................................................................... 41
Figure 5.7 Test result of measurement models ........................................................ 60
Figure 5.8 Test result of SEM linear structure model .............................................. 63
Figure 5.9 Research model with path coefficient and p-value................................. 67


ABSTRACT
Purpose: This study aims to identify the factors that affect the entrepreneurial
intention of university students in the economics area at Vietnam National
University Hanoi - International School. From there, policy implications are
introduced in order to promote the entrepreneurial spirit of the students.
Methodology: A survey was administered from first-year students to graduated
students studying business in VNU- International School, yielding a total sample of
322. The research method was conducted through surveys by questionnaires and
multivariate data analysis including Cronbach‟s Alpha, EFA, CFA, SEM.
Findings: This paper has used the theory of planned behavior developed by Ajzen
(1991). The results identified eights factors impacting on students‟ intention
including: attitude, perceived behavior control, subjective norms, entrepreneurial
self-efficacy, risk-taking propensity, university environment, and entrepreneurship
education, perceived family support. The implications of this study expected to
significantly contribute to the improvement of international education and
cooperation programs in Vietnam National University Hanoi- International School.
Implication:
Research implications:

This study has identified attitudes, perceived behavior

control and subjective norm play important role in startups intention. Additional,
personal characteristics such as self-efficacy and risk-taking propensity contributed
the most to the prediction of entrepreneur intention.
Practical implications: This study helps International School get more information
about the student‟s entrepreneurial intention. Therefore, educators and educational
policymakers should take into account factors in entrepreneurship education in
order to foster students‟ entrepreneur intention.
Keyword: Entrepreneurial intention, entrepreneurial self-efficacy, Risk-taking
propensity, Entrepreneurship education, Start-up, Starting a business, Start-up spirit.

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1.1.

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
Problem background

Start-up plays an important role for creative activities, economic development and
job creation for workers (Moica et al, 2012). For example, in the United States,
average income has increased 700 times since the 19th century until now (Baumol,
2004), more than 90% of assets and 34 million jobs were created by startups in the
1980s and 90s (Timmons & Spinelli, 1999). In Vietnam, the contribution of new
businesses, especially small and medium enterprises from the private sector,
accounts for nearly 50% of GDP and attracts about 90% of new labor (VCCI,
2018). Thus, promoting entrepreneurship is a good solution for job creation,
increasing the dynamics of the economy and reducing unemployment.
The unemployment rate of graduated students has been increasing in recent years.
According to the announcement of the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social

Affairs in 2019, there are about 225,000 unemployed bachelors and masters. This
shows that promoting and creating strong motivation for student start-up activities is
very important. However, the start-up journey is not simply the establishment of a
new business, it needs to be seen in a process from intention to action (Hisrich et al.,
2013). The intention to start a business is an early stage of entrepreneurship and is
influenced by exogenous factors (Anderson & Jack, 2002). Intention expresses an
individual's willingness to act and is a direct premise of the behavior (Ajzen, 2011).
Research by Amitage & Corner (2011), Kibler et al (2014), shows that the intention
to predict about 50% of the actual behavior.
Moreover, understanding the mechanism that influences entrepreneurial intentions
is seen as an effective measure to improve the number and quality of the
entrepreneurs (Boulton & Turner, 2005; Mellor et al., 2009). Therefore, to promote
start-up activities for students, it is necessary to assess the originating factors of
entrepreneurial intent. Over the years, there has been plenty of researches on the
topic of entrepreneurship. Notably, numerous researchers around the world are

2


interested in the factors affecting on intentions to start a business of individuals. The
previous studies such as Karimi et al., 2014, Soria-Barreto et al. (2017) showed that
there are three main elements to the fundamental factors affecting the
entrepreneurial intention such as entrepreneurship education; environmental
elements (economic); and personal elements.
In Vietnam, in recent years, government agencies have had many policies and
programs to support startup activities for individuals. In particular, the specific
subjects that most of start-up programs target to is students so that they can promote
creativity, build a career and applying their knowledge in business. There have been
a number of studies on students' entrepreneurial intentions and focus on economic
students (Phan Anh Tu & Giang Thi Cam Tien, 2015, Hoang Thi Thuong (2014)

and studies tend to turn indirect relationships of factors influencing start-up into
direct relationships. However, empirical evidence shows that their startup intention
is still low, and the majority of graduates tend to apply to active businesses.
Besides, the startup operations in our country in recent years are evaluated as a
movement and inconsistency. Therefore, it is imperative to study the current state of
students' startup intention to propose solutions for promoting their entrepreneurial
spirit.
Vietnam National University Hanoi- International Sschool has been reputing to be
the most experienced university in Vietnam university system over the years. In
addition, students in the university are energetic, whole-hearted, and eager to learn,
and especially full of business ideas and entrepreneurial intentions. Therefore, to
encourage them to start a business, it is necessary to study the factors affecting
students' entrepreneurial intention. That is the reason why I decided to conduct a
research of "Verifying antecedents affecting entrepreneurial intention among
business students in higher education: The case of Vietnam National University
Hanoi - International School”.

3


1.2.

Research Objective

The purpose of this research is to explore the awareness of IS‟s students toward the
entrepreneurial intention. More importantly, my objective is to understand the
factors that affect IS‟s students entrepreneurial intentions.
1.3.

Research scope and subject

 Research subject: The study analysis the theoretical and practical issues
about student's entrepreneurial intention at Vietnam National University
Hanoi- International School.
 Research scope:
 Scope of research content: The thesis focuses on researching the
factors that affect the entrepreneurial intention of university students.
 Scope of research space: because of regional culture and business
environment conditions of different regions affect the intention to start
a business so the thesis is limited to research at VNU- IS
 Scope of the research time: The entire study includes both theoretical
research and survey implemented in 3 months from February to May
2020.
 Scope of the research object: Thesis research from freshman to
graduated students at VNU- IS
1.4.

Research Questionnaire

The thesis aims to answer the following research questions:


What are the factors that affect the entrepreneurial intention of students at
Vietnam National University Hanoi- International School?



What is the impact level of each factor on student’s entrepreneurial intention
at Vietnam National University Hanoi - International School?

1.5.

Research Structure

The thesis is divided into six chapters as following:


Chapter 1: Introduction – introduces briefly about problem background of
entrepreneur, research objectives, research questions

4




Chapter 2: Literature Review - summaries the findings of the previous studies
about entrepreneurial intention.



Chapter 3: Theoretical Framework and Hypothesis –explains the theory used
in the research, give research development model and explains the hypothesis.



Chapter 4: Research Methodology – provides about the methodology used to
the research, design questionnaire survey



Chapter 5: Data Analysis – analysis results from SPSS and AMOS software



Chapter 6: Conclusion – answers research questions, gives some solutions,
research and practical contribution, limitations and future research.

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CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1. Entrepreneur and entrepreneurship
There are many definitions for entrepreneurs developed over a few recent decades.
Katila, R., (2012) defined as “a person who organizes and manages any enterprise,
especially a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk. Besides,
Belicove et. al (2012) described that instead of being an employee, an entrepreneur
runs a small business and takes all the risks and rewards of a business venture, idea,
or goods or services offered for sale. Entrepreneurs are often viewed as business
leaders and innovators with new business ideas and processes.
Kirzner (1985) and Korpysa, (2012) explained that an entrepreneur is a person who
might optimize information in such a the way to discover new and improved
business opportunities ,while Bygrave W.D and Hofer C.W, (1991) who define an
entrepreneur as "...someone who perceives an opportunity and creates an
organization to pursue it". Similarly, Schumpeter (1947) considered that

"

entrepreneurs are people who create new products or services in the new or existing
market".
It is also essential to distinguish between the two terms "Entrepreneurship" and

"Entrepreneur".
Entrepreneurship can broadly be defined as the creation or extraction of value
(Gaddefors,2017). Entrepreneurship has traditionally been defined as the process of
designing, launching and running a new business, which typically begins as a small
business, such as a startup company, offering a product, process or service for sale
or hire (Diochon, 2011). It has been defined as the “…capacity and willingness to
develop, organize, and manage a business venture along with any of its risks in
order to make a profit( Gaddefors,2017).”
Robbins & Coulter (2012) stated that “entrepreneurship is the process of starting
new businesses, generally in response to opportunities” Entrepreneurship, according
to Onuoha (2007), “is the practice of starting new organizations or revitalizing
mature organizations, particularly new businesses generally in response to identified

6


opportunities.”. Entrepreneurship is defined as "the process of creating a new
venture and new organization" (S. Shane and S. Venkataraman,2000). In general,
entrepreneurship can be considered as a spirit of innovation and creativity.
The core elements of entrepreneurship are the ability to seize business
opportunities; risk-taking attitude; and ideas for innovation - creativity. Researchers
have given some characteristics of entrepreneurship: (1) Ability to create business
opportunities; (2)Be independent and take responsibility; (3) Develop creative ideas
and innovate problem-solving methods, and (4) Having business ethics and social
responsibilities. From that, the main motivations of a startup are to first assert
himself and then to contribute to society. Meanwhile, the motivation for money and
prosperity is secondary.
2.2. Entrepreneurial intention

The entrepreneurial intention defined as the intention of an individual to start a new

business (Krueger, 2009). The entrepreneurial intention is the first step toward
entrepreneurial behavior (Krueger & Carsrud, 1993), and it plays an essential role in
the decision to create a new firm (Liñan and Chen, 2009;).
The Theory of Planned Behaviour (Ajzen, 1991; 2011) and the Theory of Reasoned
Action (TRA) has been widely used to analyze entrepreneurial intentions.
According to this theory, the intention shows the eagerness of an individual and
becomes the determinant to perform a specific behavior (Ajzen 1991; 2011).
According to Sesen (2013), Entrepreneurial intention can be defined as the relation
of an individual's intention to start a business. Or as Fayolle, Liñán & Moriano
(2014) define this as a process that drives the planning and implementation of a
business creation plan. Shirokova et al. (2016) argue that an individual‟s intention
to start a business stems from their recognition of opportunities, leveraging
available resources and environmental support to create their own businesses.
Students‟ entrepreneurial intentions stem from student ideas and are properly

7


guided by educational programs and trainers (Oyugi, 2014). This study uses the
definition of student entrepreneurial intention.
2.3. Previous model about entrepreneurial intention

Researchers such as Mwiya, et.al (2017), Ozaralli, N et al., (2016) applied the
theory of planned behavior among students and confirmed that attitudes towards
entrepreneurship, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control positively
affect to startups intention. Attitude towards the behavior refers to the degree to
which the individual holds a positive or negative personal valuation about being an
entrepreneur (Ajzen, 2002, Mwiya,et.al, 2017). Perceived behavior control is a
condition where people believe that behavior is easy or difficult to do( Cruz et
al.,2015). Subjective norms are aspects of socially personal beliefs from influential

people (Ajzen, 1985), (Kautonen, T., Gelderen, M., & Fink, M., 2015).
A model conducted and extended by Karimi et al., 2014 showed that some
exogenous variables related to EI through the motivational antecedents of EI. Based
on the theory of planned behavior, Saeid Karimi et al. 2014 stated that personality
factors (achievement, risk-taking, and locus of control) and contextual factors
(perceived barriers and supports) significantly related to startups' intention.
Personality, especially risk-taking propensity, emerged as the strongest variables to
correlate with startups' intention. In contrast, the subjective norm to be least
important for entrepreneurship

in a model based upon the TPB (Krueger et

al.,2000; Karimi et al., 2014)
Soria-Barreto et al. (2017) used the model of theory of planned behavior and
mediated by entrepreneurial education, the university environment, and the prior
entrepreneurial exposure to generate entrepreneurial intention in higher education
students. The results showed that entrepreneurial education is the best predictor to
reinforces the perceived control of behavior. They found that gender has a moderate
impact on perceived behavior control and entrepreneurial education.

8


A study conducted by Nguyen Thu Thuy (2014) was conducted with nearly 700
students in Hanoi. The thesis combined three groups of environmental factors,
personal experiences, and university education experience to develop a model of
factors affecting the start-up potential of university students. The findings pointed
out that experiences gained during university and participation in extracurricular
business activities that have an impact on students' startup's intention, while the
student's major has no impact on the desire to start a business.

Hoang Thi Thuong (2014) inherited some factors such as individual personality,
university environment, which referenced in previous research topics, the author
pointed out additional variable affecting entrepreneurial intention is the financial
market conditions. This study indicated that market economic conditions have a
significant influence on entrepreneurship. However, the element of perceived
desirability (attitude towards entrepreneurship) is still the most important cause
leading to the student's intention to start a business.
From the literature, it can be said that the trend to research on entrepreneurial
intention will become more popular. In the context of an integrated economy, young
people, and especially students have access to diverse business opportunities,
entrepreneurship is seen as an effective way to deal with social and community
issues and creating new values for the economy.
2.4. Literature Gaps

 Gaps in research about entrepreneurial intention:
Firstly, the impact of prefixes in the theory of planned behavior on individual
startup intentions is controversial issues. The results of theory in previous studies
showed that main factors such as attitude toward entrepreneurship and perceived
behavioral control have a positive relationship with entrepreneurial intention such
as Leong, CK (2008); Kautonen, T., et al (2015), Yordanova & Tarrazon, (2010).
However, the subjective norm factors have heterogeneity results in the previous

9


search. Some researcher such as Peterman & Kennedy, (2003); Veciana, Aponte &
Urbano, (2005), Kolvereid (1996a) proved that subjective norm has a negative
relationship with entrepreneurial intent. Thus, re-testing this relationship plays an
important role in validating and generalizing the theory.
Secondly, the theory of planned behavior is used in the thesis as the underlying

basis, which is considered a new thing in researches in Vietnam. Liñán & Chen's
research confirms the impact of prefixes on entrepreneurial intent is different across
cultures, environments, and social classes. Up to the present, theory of planned
behavior application studies have been carried out mostly in developed countries,
where entrepreneurial intentions of individuals often stem from demand, interests
and to increase income ( Devonish, D., Alleyne et al 2010). In contrast, low- and
middle-income countries such as Vietnam, the intention to start a business often
arises as a single option to survive and maintain a living income( Bosma, N et al
2008). Therefore, the research results in developed countries cannot be applied in
Vietnam in particular and developing countries in general. It is necessary to have
different research to verify the prefixes of TPB applied for the Vietnamese
environment and especially for students.
Third, most studies in Vietnam such as Hoang Thi Thuong (2014), Phan Anh Tu et
al.,(2016), Nguyen Quoc Nghi et al., (2016), Nguyen Quoc Nghi et al.,(2017) ,when
applying the theory of planned behavior only consider three prefixes that directly
affect the intention to start a business. Due to methodological limitations, the
authors convert indirect relationships in the TPB model into direct relations without
evidence on direct relations. Koe's study confirmed that adding other exogenous
variables to the model can provide greater accuracy in prediction, the intention of
action does not depend solely on the individual's perceptions of entrepreneurship or
the opinions of people around (Koe, W. L, 2016). In fact, TPB only explains from
30% to 50% of entrepreneurial intention (Liñán, F., & Chen 2011). Even the father
of TPB advises researchers to consider adding feasible variables to the research

10


model. Therefore, contemporary scholars tend to apply the three prefixes of TPB to
consider starting a business and adding some other impact variables into the model
with the desire to bring a more accurate assessment of intent, more appropriate to

the research context.
In this research, the model considers the groups of variables that indirectly affect
the intention to start a business through three direct prefixes of TPB. At the same
time, the research model of the thesis also adds a number of questions and classifies
factors based on the object that has a significant impact such as personal, university,
family with the desire to bring a more accurate assessment about the students'
entrepreneurial intentions.

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CHAPTER 3: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK AND HYPOTHESIS
3.1. Fundamental model
3.1.1. Theory of Reasoned Actions (TRA)

Attitude
Intention

Behavior

Subjective
Norms

Figure 3.1. Theory of Reasoned Actions
The theory of reasoned actions aims to explain the relationship between attitude and
behaviors within human action. The theory of reasoned action (Fishbein & Ajzen,
1975) shows that the behavior is determined by the intention to perform the actual
behavior. Attitude is an individual‟s favorable or unfavorable feeling about
performing a particular behavior. An individual will intend to perform a particular
behavior when the individual evaluates it positively. The subjective norm is defined

as the perception of influencer (family, friends,...) that individuals approve or
disapprove of the behavior.
Theory of reasoned actions indirectly explains the process of forming students'
entrepreneurial intent. The theory of reasoned action suggests that stronger
intentions lead to increased effort to perform the behavior, which also increases the
likelihood for the behavior to be performed ( Ajzen,1991)
Summary, theory of reasoned actions was developed to predict behavior and
understand the effects of people's motivations on actual behavior, and these actual
behaviors are not controlled by personal factors, which is also a limitation of this
theory.

12


3.1.2. Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB)
The theory of planned behavior (TPB; Ajzen 1991) was an effort to extend the TRA
to include behaviors that are not entirely under volitional control. This theory was
developed by Ajzen (1991) as a framework that might be applied to different
behavioral contexts, and it was introduced to the entrepreneurial intention context
by Krueger and Carsrud (1993). Theory of the Planned Behavior (Ajzen 1991)
contains three explanatory variables: attitude towards entrepreneurial behavior
(ATE), subjective norms (SN) and perceived behavioral control (PBC).

Figure 3.2. Theory of Planned Behavior
Ajzen (1991) defined that attitude toward behavior “ refers to the degree to which a
person has a favorable or unfavorable evaluation or appraisal of the behavior in
question”. The second factor is termed subjective norm, which “refers to the
perceived social pressure to perform or not to perform the behavior”. The third
antecedent of intention is perceived behaviour control, which “refer to the perceived
ease or difficulty of performing the behavior”

The attitude toward the behavior, the subjective norm, and the perceived behavioral
control affect the development of a behavioral intention. In particular, perceived
behavioral control is considered not only to affect behavioral achievement directly
but also to affect it indirectly through behavioral intention.

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As a general rule, the more favorable the attitude toward behaviour and the
subjective norm, and the greater the perceived behavioural control, the stronger the
person's intention to perform the behaviour should be. Finally, given a sufficient
degree of actual control over the behaviour, people are expected to carry out their
intentions when the opportunity arises , Ajzen, I (2002).
There are several shortcomings in the theory of planned behavior . It does not
consider other variables that affect behavioral intention and an individual's
motivation, such as mood, or experience, environmental or economic factors that
may influence a person's intention to perform a behavior.
The discussion about the relationship between the variables of the theory of planned
behavior model and entrepreneurial intention will be declared in the following
section. Besides, five moderating factors such as entrepreneurial self-efficacy, risktaking propensity, university environment, and entrepreneurship education,
perceived family support are also added in the model.

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