Previous studies to some extent provide a vague picture of the impact of entrepreneurship education and, in particular, none of the entrepreneurship education programs in Thailand have been examined. Therefore, this research paper aims to contribute to the understanding of the impact of Thai entrepreneurship education on entrepreneurial intention. As a result, it could be used as a basis for developing the objectives and structures of entrepreneurship education programs in Thailand.
However, there is a lack of research studies and inconclusive results regarding the impact of this entrepreneurship education. Previous research examinations do not measure the direct impact of an entrepreneurship education on entrepreneurial intentions. Moreover, we also need to understand the motivation and potential barriers to the formation of entrepreneurial intention from the influence of entrepreneurship education.
Research Objective and Question
Therefore, this research paper will deal with the impact of entrepreneurial education on entrepreneurial intention in Thailand.
Research Scope
LITERATURE REVIEW
- Entrepreneurship Concept
- Entrepreneurial Intention
- Impact of Entrepreneurship Education
- Entrepreneurship Education Program Framework
- Theoretical Framework
- Hypothesis
As a result, in Entrepreneurial intention studies several research studies are carried out with the theory of Planned Behavior Theory from Icek Ajzen (Summers, 2000). In this thematic paper, the concept of entrepreneurial intention will be based on this theory of planned behavior. In this context of results, it carries a number of unrelated factors towards entrepreneurial intentions in "Planned Behavior Theory", for example entrepreneurial status involving the individual life has been improved as a result of entrepreneurial education.
In this hypothesis, author establishes the relationship between theory of planned behavior entrepreneurial intention influenced by entrepreneurship program characteristics, in which the details of characteristics will be discussed in the methodology chapter. The variables in the entrepreneurial intention framework consist of the constructs of the theory of planned behavior that include a) attitude toward behavior, b) social norms, and c) perceived behavioral control. Several current aforementioned studies show positive impact of entrepreneurship education on entrepreneurial intention within the framework of planned behavior theory.
DATA COLLECTION METHODOLOGY
- Research Method
- Sample Description
- Participants
- CMMU’s Entrepreneurship Education Programs
- Questionnaire Design
- Data Analysis
According to the literature review, the focus of this thesis is on capturing the effect of program characteristics of entrepreneurship education on entrepreneurial intention effects. The holistic framework of program characteristics proposed by the Word Bank is used to explain the practice of the entrepreneurship program at CMMU. The framework separates the characteristics of the program into four main categories, which are a) Program Design, b) Trainer and Delivery, c) Content and Curriculum and d) Wrap-around Services (World Bank, 2014).
By author's motivation, some sub-components will not be included in explanation, such as student selection process, source of program funding, unit cost of program and firm's access to finance. In light of the description of program characteristics, it is reasonable to say that these factors are rather useful for other comparison-based research between different entrepreneurship programs. Referring to Work Bank's definition on characteristics of program design, it refers to arrangements of a program's objective, scope and method to determine progress (World Bank, 2014).
Trainers and implementers are the main contributors to the program features that provide the content of the programs. The implementation of the program includes not only face-to-face learning, but also virtual learning and experiential learning (see summary in Appendix 2). Content and curriculum are one of the most important features of the program, as other components revolve more around them.
Outreach services are aspects of a program that complement the main content and curriculum, including arrangements for networking, mentoring, job guidance. The design of the questionnaire survey follows several guidelines in both literature and conceptual framework. The main constructs of the theory of planned behavior will be adapted to the specific context of survey questions related to entrepreneurship program characteristics framework (see Exhibit 1 below).
The analysis will be carried out on the variables of various outcomes of attitudes towards behaviour, perceived behavioral control and social norms, which are the main constructs of the theory of planned behaviour.
RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DATA ANALYSIS
- Perceived Behavioral Control
- Social Norms
- Graduates VS Current Students
- Graduates (16B) VS Current Students (17A) .1 Attitude towards Behavior
- Graduates (16B) VS Current Students (16C) .1 Attitude towards Behavior
- Summary of Results
By comparing the mean scores between graduate students 16B and current students 17A on attitude towards the behavioral aspect, the results show that 6 of the 7 tested variables of graduate students have higher mean scores than current students. However, the results show that according to Exhibit 3, there is no statistically significant difference between graduate students 16B and current students 17A. Comparing the mean scores between graduate students 16B and current students 17A on the perceived aspect of behavioral control, the results show 8 of the 17 variables tested. of graduate students have higher average scores than current students.
By comparing average scores between graduated students 16B and current students 17A on social norms aspect, the results show only 1 out of 3 tested variables of graduated students have higher average scores than current students. By comparing mean scores between graduated students 16B and current students 16C on attitude towards behavioral aspect, the results show 7 out of 7 tested variables of graduated students have higher mean scores than current students. However, the results show that there is no statistically significant difference between graduated 16B and current 16C students according to appendix 6.
Comparing mean scores between graduated students 16B and current students 16B on perceived behavioral control aspect, the results show 5 out of 17 tested variables of graduated students have higher mean scores than current students. However, the results show that there is no statistically significant difference between graduated 16B and current 16C students according to appendix 7. By comparing average scores between graduated students 16B and current students 16C on social norms aspect, the results show 2 out of 3 tested variables of graduated students have higher average scores than current students.
However, the results show that there is no statistically significant difference between graduating 16B and current 16C students according to Appendix 8. The factor that has the highest mean scores is attitude towards behavior at 5.10, followed by mean scores of perceived behavioral control at 4.24 and 4.20. , and social norms at 4.20. The results show two statistically significant differences in the mean scores between current students and graduates.
First, current students actually had higher mean scores on the aspect of start-up & strategic planning than graduate students. Second, current students also had higher average scores on the aspect of inspiration from teachers to become entrepreneurs than graduate students. In conclusion, these statistical differences in mean scores do not always indicate that graduate students had statistically higher mean scores or higher entrepreneurial intent than current students.
RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS
- Discussion of the Results
- Implications for Research
- Implications for Practice
- Limitations of this Study
- Suggestions for Future Research
This thematic paper contributes to the development of Thailand's entrepreneurship education programs and benefits students. The research findings support the further development of the literature review on the fact that Thai entrepreneurship education also had a positive relationship with entrepreneurial intention. Through an in-depth analysis, the result can additionally provide new variations in the direction of “maintaining entrepreneurial intention” during the entrepreneurial program so that entrepreneurial intention can change.
According to the results, it would now be necessary to discover a better understanding of the mechanics that influence entrepreneurial intention and a stronger increase in the objectives and structures of entrepreneurship education in relation to the needs of its students. This study provides broad insight into the impact of entrepreneurship education on entrepreneurial intention using cohorts from three enrollment cohorts from CMMU entrepreneurship. First, the results of this research can be considered as not generalizable to all entrepreneurship programs in Thailand, as this research only considered the CMMU entrepreneurship education program.
In the field of entrepreneurship education in Thailand, future study would benefit from further research in a number of areas. First, future research could provide a comprehensive analysis of the impact of entrepreneurship education according to specific student profiles. Target specific business participants who could add value to the research, for example, business education that could benefit from a realistic life cycle assessment, e.g.
This can provide benefits to researchers on participants' emotions, which can be helpful in enhancing the validity of entrepreneurial intention. Third, future research could focus on the length and duration of the entrepreneurship education program, in other words, the intensity of the program that may affect entrepreneurial intention. In particular, an example could be that the more students learn, the more effective the point at which entrepreneurial intention increases or decreases.
Therefore, it may be worth investigating whether or not overeducation does influence entrepreneurial intention.
APPENDICES
Appendix A: Entrepreneur Education Program- Detailed Structure
I am determined to do my very best to start and run my own business. t-test for equality of means. Guest speakers who are entrepreneurs (or business owners) inspire me to become an entrepreneur myself. t-test for equality of means SOCIAL NORMS. Summary of Independent Sample Test-Sig. 2-sided) of mean scores relative to other demographic data of experimental groups.
Age: Participants who are in the older age groups tend to have significantly higher mean attitude toward behavior scores than participants in the younger age groups; .. but those who are older have significantly lower mean scores on perceived behavioral control. Only a significant difference was found - the average scores of "friends" of social norms were higher for women regarding the desire to become entrepreneurs. Guest speakers who are entrepreneurs (or business owners) inspire me to become an entrepreneur myself.
Appendix B: Questionnaire Survey
1. Age
To what extent do you agree with the following statements about your entrepreneurial attitude after completing the CMMU Entrepreneurial Program? Strongly disagree Disagree Somewhat disagree Somewhat agree Agree Strongly agree .. a) Among the various career options, being an entrepreneur is attractive. for me. After completing the CMMU Entrepreneurial Program, to what extent do you think you have the following aspects regarding your capabilities to be an entrepreneur?
After attending CMMU Entrepreneurial Program, to what extent do you agree with the following statements about your entrepreneurial capacity? Finally, please specify percentage grade from 0-100% on how competent you feel to start a business.
