Cultural traits of entrepreneurship education: a cross-national study

Abstract

Purpose This study aims to develop insights on how national culture, gender and field of study can influence the impact of entrepreneurship education toward the development of entrepreneurial intention. Design/methodology/approach The entrepreneurship education project gathered data from over 18,000 undergraduate student responses, spanning over 70 countries and 400 universities. The sample used in this research examined eight countries with significantly different national cultures, while a quantitative analysis of a sample of n = 5,033 responses was performed. Beyond correlation analysis, a hierarchical multiple regression model is implemented for intention along with moderation analysis. Findings The statistical analysis reveals robust correlations among several entrepreneurial concepts and national cultural indices. As expected, national culture interweaves with all entrepreneurial concepts and more significantly for students of socially oriented disciplines. Gendera and field of the study appear moderators of causal relationships between entrepreneurial constructs. Exerting a strong influence by culture, entrepreneurial identity appears the most significant explanator of intention. Overall, the emergent pattern suggests entrepreneurship is intentional, but in a socially justified and accepted manner closely related to local cultural norms and institutions. Research limitations/implications Implications pertain to research for entrepreneurial intention and to educators and educational bodies concerning their goal setting for entrepreneurial programs and appropriate scheduling of effective pedagogies. Originality/value The study exploits a large data set from eight countries (Brazil, Colombia, Germany, Lithuania, Malaysia, Mexico, Spain and USA) which permits systematic quantitative search for the influence of culture on the impact of entrepreneurship education. Cross-national studies of entrepreneurship education and the effect of national culture have been scant in literature – a research gap the study responds to. The inclusion of both developing and developed countries contributes in a novel way to a unique understanding of the influence of culture on entrepreneurial concepts through education.

What Factors Affect the Entrepreneurial Intention to Start-Ups? The Role of Entrepreneurial Skills, Propensity to Take Risks, and Innovativeness in Open Business Models

“…Through entrepreneurial intention, they can create, identify, and bring the vision to life. This vision can be developed as an opportunity, idea, or strategy to execute something in a better way [34].…”

Promoting entrepreneurship based on university students' perceptions of entrepreneurial attitude, university environment, entrepreneurial culture and entrepreneurial training

“…Although Fleck et al (2020) suggest that Colombia has a high social acceptance of a culture of entrepreneurship, with the family as the fundamental cornerstone that supports it and Osorio et al (2020) hold that, in Colombia, students who have been exposed to entrepreneurial information, training and/or education are more likely to develop an entrepreneurial intention and be better prepared to face the processes involved in this career path than those who have not had that experience. In addition, the former are more likely to choose an entrepreneurial career.…”

Teaching entrepreneurship in China: culture matters

“…Ample empirical research exists linking cultural context and entrepreneurship (e.g. Welter et al , 2019; Welter and Baker, 2020; Wennberg et al , 2013) using Hofstede's cultural dimension framework (Fleck et al , 2020; Oo et al , 2018; Shirokova et al , 2018). The dimensions of this framework are outlined in Table 1.…”

“…IJEBR 27,5 Two streams of research inquiry have emerged studying the influence of cultural context in entrepreneurship: one considering the national level and the other the individual level. A substantial body of empirical research demonstrates how culture impacts the rate and type of national entrepreneurial activity (Fleck et al, 2020;Oo et al, 2018;Shirokova et al, 2018). For example, Lortie et al (2019) examine the link between long-term orientation (LTO) and entrepreneurial activity in 62 countries and find that countries with LTO have a high rate of entrepreneurial activity.…”

“…Cultural context needs to underpin the design, development and delivery of entrepreneurship education (Alexander and Hjortsø, 2013; Bandera et al , 2018; Liguori et al , 2019). Although some research exists highlighting the critical role cultural context plays in general (Bogatyreva et al , 2019; Klofsten and Jones-Evans, 2000), how culture influences entrepreneurship teaching approaches and methods has not been developed (Flek et al , 2020; Neergaard and Christensen, 2017; Thomassen et al , 2019).…”