An exploratory study of entrepreneurial attributes among Malaysian university students

Entrepreneurial attributes motivate and enable individuals to enter into the challenging process of creating new ventures. A tremendous amount of research has been devoted to identifying these attributes and evaluating the impact of education and training programs on developing such attributes, particularly among university students. However, few researchers have examined a combination of students' entrepreneurial characteristics that can be developed through education and training. This study aims to determine a set of entrepreneurial attributes, including self-regulation, self-efficacy and intention, among Malaysian university students. A total of 722 students were randomly selected as participants. Our results indicated that these students have a moderate level of self-regulation and entrepreneurial self-efficacy but a high intention to become an entrepreneur. Furthermore, students are more prevention than promotion focused. We discuss the implications of these findings for entrepreneurship research, theory development and education. (Zaidatol Akmaliah, Lope Pihie, Bagheri, A. AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF ENTREPRENEURIAL ATTRIBUTES AMONG MALAYSIAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS. Life Sci J 2012;9(3):2358-2365) (ISSN:1097-8135). http://www.lifesciencesite.com. 341

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