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Development and validation of an Entrepreneurial Intention Questionnaire (EIQ)

Liñán, Francisco

Abstract

Entrepreneurship education quite often concentrates on business-plan and start-up courses. Higher education institutions -such as universities or colleges- do not differ significantly from this general trend. These courses do play a very important role in giving students technical knowledge about entrepreneurship and -through it- they also increase their self-efficacy perceptions. However, the decision to create a firm not only depends on knowing how to do it and feeling able. There are other important elements that also have to be taken into account. According to the literature, the intention to be an entrepreneur would be the single best predictor of actual firm-creation behaviour. In this sense, an entrepreneur would make his decision based on three elements: his personal preference or attraction towards entrepreneurship; the perceived social valuation of that career option; and, thirdly, his perceived feasibility (self-efficacy perceptions). Unfortunately, there is not a validated instrument to measure abilities, attitudes and intentions towards entrepreneurship. In this sense, we have developed an Entrepreneurial Intention Questionnaire (EIQ), based on an integration of psychology and entrepreneurship literature, as well as previous empirical research in this field. These items are designed as likert-type scales. It also includes other items about knowledge of the entrepreneurial world, family background, labour experience and business objectives, to test their relationships with entrepreneurial intention. This EIQ has been recently validated on a sample of 354 last-year university students of business and economics. In this paper we describe the main characteristics and psychometric properties of the EIQ. Traditional reliability measures, as Cronbach’s α, confirm that items used in each construct are adequate. Besides, general results strongly support the validity of the entrepreneurial intention model. Therefore, there would be a solid base for designing and implementing entrepreneurship courses trying to affect personal preferences and perceived social valuation of entrepreneurship. Only for those people that already show a sufficiently high level of these features, a business-plan course would achieve all its potential to increase entrepreneurial self-efficacy and the intention to become an entrepreneur.

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- 1 - De elopmen and alida ion o an En ep eneu ial In en ion Ques ionnai e (EIQ) F ancisco Liñán Uni e si y o Se ille Dep . Economía Aplicada I Uni e si y o Se ille A . Ramón y Cajal, 1. E41018 - Se ille (Spain) Tel.: +34.954554487. Fax: +34.954551636. [email p o ec ed] h p://www.pe sonal.us.es/ linan KEYWORDS: En ep eneu ship En ep eneu ial in en ion Ques ionnai e de elopmen S a is ical alida ion - 2 - De elopmen and alida ion o an En ep eneu ial In en ion Ques ionnai e (EIQ) Abs ac En ep eneu ship educa ion qui e o en concen a es on business-plan and s a - up cou ses. Highe educa ion ins i u ions -such as uni e si ies o colleges- do no di e signi ican ly om his gene al end. These cou ses do play a e y impo an ole in gi ing s uden s echnical knowledge abou en ep eneu ship and - h ough i - hey also inc ease hei sel -e icacy pe cep ions. Howe e , he decision o c ea e a i m no only depends on knowing how o do i and eeling able. The e a e o he impo an elemen s ha also ha e o be aken in o accoun . Acco ding o he li e a u e, he in en ion o be an en ep eneu would be he single bes p edic o o ac ual i m-c ea ion beha iou . In his sense, an en ep eneu would make his decision based on h ee elemen s: his pe sonal p e e ence o a ac ion owa ds en ep eneu ship; he pe cei ed social alua ion o ha ca ee op ion; and, hi dly, his pe cei ed easibili y (sel -e icacy pe cep ions). Un o una ely, he e is no a alida ed ins umen o measu e abili ies, a i udes and in en ions owa ds en ep eneu ship. In his sense, we ha e de eloped an En ep eneu ial In en ion Ques ionnai e (EIQ), based on an in eg a ion o psychology and en ep eneu ship li e a u e, as well as p e ious empi ical esea ch in his ield. These i ems a e designed as like - ype scales. I also includes o he i ems abou knowledge o he en ep eneu ial wo ld, amily backg ound, labou expe ience and business objec i es, o es hei ela ionships wi h en ep eneu ial in en ion. This EIQ has been ecen ly alida ed on a sample o 354 las -yea uni e si y s uden s o business and economics. In his pape we desc ibe he main cha ac e is ics and psychome ic p ope ies o he EIQ. T adi ional eliabili y measu es, as C onbach’s α, con i m ha i ems used in each cons uc a e adequa e. Besides, gene al esul s s ongly suppo he alidi y o he en ep eneu ial in en ion model. The e o e, he e would be a solid base o designing and implemen ing en ep eneu ship cou ses ying o a ec pe sonal p e e ences and pe cei ed social alua ion o en ep eneu ship. Only o hose people ha al eady show a su icien ly high le el o hese ea u es, a business-plan cou se would achie e all i s po en ial o inc ease en ep eneu ial sel -e icacy and he in en ion o become an en ep eneu . 1. INTRODUCTION As en ep eneu ship educa ion keeps on sp eading o e all so s o educa ional ins i u ions, cou se con en s end o a y mo e and mo e widely, anging om case ma e ials, simula ions, gues speake s, and so on. Howe e , business plan elabo a ion is p obably he mos popula one (Go man e al., 1997). In ac , a majo i y o cou ses a e o ganized a ound he p oduc ion o one such plan. Highe educa ion ins i u ions -uni e si ies, colleges, …- do no di e signi ican ly om his gene al end. Honig (2004) ound ha 78 ou o 100 op uni e si ies in he Uni ed S a es o e ed cou ses speci ically cen ed on p oduc ion o he business plan. These cou ses play a e y impo an ole in gi ing s uden s echnical knowledge abou en ep eneu ship and - h ough i - hey also inc ease hei sel -e icacy - 3 - pe cep ions. They ypically include he de elopmen o a p oposed new p oduc o se ice, in eg a ing di e se managemen knowledge such as inance, ma ke ing o p oduc ion in o one single documen . S uden s ha e o collec and summa ise ele an in o ma ion ha may be e y use ul i he en u e is o come in o exis ence. Educa o s end o eel e y com o able wi h business plans, as hey p o ide «a speci ic p ojec -o ien ed ou pu ha assis s wi h s uden e alua ion, and helps p o ide ocus and s uc u e in a ield ha is, by de ini ion, wi hou con en ional bo de s» (Honig, 2004: 260). Howe e , he decision o c ea e a i m does no depend only on knowing how o do i and eeling able. The e a e o he impo an elemen s ha also ha e o be aken in o accoun . Acco ding o he li e a u e, he in en ion o be an en ep eneu would be he single bes p edic o o ac ual i m-c ea ion beha iou (Fayolle & Gailly, 2004). In his sense, an en ep eneu ial in en ion model would a gue ha indi iduals make hei i m-c ea ion decision based on h ee elemen s (Liñán, 2004): his pe sonal p e e ence o a ac ion owa ds en ep eneu ship; he pe cei ed social no ms ega ding ha ca ee op ion; and, hi dly, his pe cei ed easibili y (sel -e icacy pe cep ions). The e o e, educa ion should be conce ned no only wi h inc easing his la e elemen , bu also wi h de eloping he o he wo. Only o hose s uden s ha ha e p e iously achie ed a su icien ly high le el o pe sonal a ac ion and pe cei ed social no ms, a business-plan cou se would achie e all i s po en ial o inc ease en ep eneu ial sel -e icacy and he in en ion o become an en ep eneu . These e lec ions lead, as a na u al consequence, o he conce n o how o measu e a i udes and in en ions owa ds en ep eneu ship. A ew no ewo hy a emp s ha e been made in his espec , such as hose o Kol e eid (1996) and K uege e al. (2000). In pa icula , he o me de eloped and alida ed an ins umen o measu e ca ee choice in en ions. Howe e , his ques ionnai e did no s udy he en ep eneu ial in en ion as such, bu o ced pa icipan s o s a e hei p e e ences and es ima ed likelihoods o pu suing a sel -employmen ca ee “as opposed o o ganiza ional employmen ”. Ne e heless, Kol e eid’s (1996) wo k may be conside ed an essen ial s ep owa ds de eloping alida ed ins umen s o measu e en ep eneu ial in en ions. As i will be explained in he ollowing sec ions, much o ou wo k is based on his con ibu ion. In his sense, we ha e de eloped an En ep eneu ial In en ion Ques ionnai e (EIQ), based on an in eg a ion o psychology and en ep eneu ship li e a u e, as well as p e ious empi ical esea ch in his ield. The EIQ is based mainly on seman ic di e en ial scales o measu e each o he heo e ical cons uc s. In pa icula , in en ion is measu ed as indica ing he e o people a e planning o exe o pe o m he en ep eneu ial beha iou (Ajzen, 1991). Valida ion o he EIQ has been ecen ly ca ied ou on a sample o uni e si y s uden s o business and economics. In his pape we desc ibe he main cha ac e is ics and psychome ic p ope ies o he EIQ. T adi ional eliabili y measu es, as C onbach’s α, con i m ha i ems used in each cons uc a e adequa e. Besides, gene al esul s s ongly suppo he alidi y o he en ep eneu ial in en ion model. The pape is di ided in i e sec ions. A e his in oduc ion, sec ion wo p esen s he en ep eneu ial in en ion model in which he EIQ is based. The hi d sec ion desc ibes how he ques ionnai e was de eloped. The alida ion p ocess and eg ession esul s a e p esen ed in sec ion ou . Finally, in sec ion i e we discuss hose esul s, oge he wi h some possible implica ions o en ep eneu ship educa ion. - 4 - 2. ENTREPRENEURIAL INTENTION MODEL Me hodologies used so a o s udy he en ep eneu ha e been changing along he yea s (Liñán & Rod íguez, 2004). In he beginning, many au ho s looked o he exis ence o ce ain pe sonali y ea u es o ai s ha could be associa ed wi h he en ep eneu ial ac i i y (McClelland, 1961). La e on, o he wo ks ha e been ca ied ou ema king he impo ance o di e en cha ac e is ics such as age, gende , o igin, eligion, le el o s udies, labou expe ience, e c. (Reynolds e al., 1994; S o ey, 1994), which a e usually called “demog aphic” a iables (Robinson e al., 1991). Bo h lines o analysis ha e allowed he iden i ica ion o signi ican ela ionships among ce ain ai s o demog aphic cha ac e is ics o he indi idual, and he ul ilmen o en ep eneu ial beha iou s. Howe e , he p edic i e capaci y has been e y limi ed (Reynolds, 1997). On he heo e ical side, many au ho s ha e c i icized hose app oaches (Ajzen, 1991; Shape o & Sokol, 1982; Ga ne , 1989; San os, 2001; Veciana e al., 2000), so much o hei me hodological and concep ual limi a ions as o hei low explana o y capaci y. F om a hi d pe spec i e, since he decision o become an en ep eneu may be plausibly conside ed as olun a y and conscious (K uege e al., 2000), i seems easonable o analyze how ha decision is aken. In his sense, he en ep eneu ial in en ion would be a p e ious and de e minan elemen owa ds pe o ming en ep eneu ial beha iou s (Fayolle & Gailly, 2004; Kol e eid, 1996). In u n, he in en ion o ca ying ou a gi en beha iou will depend on he pe son's a i udes owa ds ha beha iou (Ajzen, 1991). Mo e a ou able a i udes would make mo e easible he in en ion o ca ying i ou , and he o he way ound. In his sense, his “a i ude app oach” would be p e e able o hose used adi ionally in he analysis o he en ep eneu , such as he ai s o he demog aphic app oaches (Robinson e al., 1991; K uege e al., 2000). Thus, a i udes would measu e he ex en o which an indi idual alues posi i ely o nega i ely some beha iou (Liñán, 2004). In his pape , wo con ibu ions will be specially conside ed as a e e ence, due o hei in luence on o he ecen wo ks: In he i s place, he heo y o he “en ep eneu ial e en ” (Shape o & Sokol, 1982) and, secondly, he much mo e highly s uc u ed heo y o “planned beha iou ” (Ajzen, 1991). Bo h models p esen a high le el o mu ual compa ibili y (K uege e al., 2000). The e o e, ou wo k is based on an in eg a ion o bo h. The heo y o he en ep eneu ial e en conside s i m c ea ion as he esul o he in e ac ion among con ex ual ac o s, which would ac h ough hei in luence on he indi idual's pe cep ions. The conside a ion o he en ep eneu ial op ion would ake place as a consequence o some ex e nal change -a p ecipi a ing e en - (Pe e man & Kennedy, 2003). People’s answe s o ha ex e nal e en will depend on hei pe cep ions abou he a ailable al e na i es. The e a e wo basic kinds o pe cep ions: - Pe cei ed desi abili y e e s o he deg ee o which he/she eels a ac ion o a gi en beha iou ( o become an en ep eneu ). - Pe cei ed easibili y is de ined as he deg ee o which people conside hemsel es pe sonally able o ca y ou ce ain beha iou . The p esence o ole models, men o s o pa ne s would be a decisi e elemen in es ablishing he indi idual's en ep eneu ial easibili y le el. - 5 - In u n, bo h ypes o pe cep ions a e de e mined by cul u al and social ac o s, h ough hei in luence on he indi idual's alues sys em (Shape o & Sokol, 1982). The e o e, ex e nal ci cums ances would no de e mine i m-c ea ion beha iou s di ec ly, bu a he hey would be he esul o he (conscious o unconscious) analysis ca ied ou by he pe son abou he desi abili y and easibili y o he di e en possible al e na i es in ha si ua ion. Along he same line, bu much mo e de ailed, Ajzen (1991) de elops a psychological model o “planned beha iou ”. I is a heo y ha may be applied o nea ly all olun a y beha iou s and i p o ides qui e good esul s in e y di e se ields, including he choice o p o essional ca ee (Ajzen, 2001; Kol e eid, 1996). Acco ding o i , a na ow ela ionship would exis be ween he in en ion o be an en ep eneu , and i s e ec i e pe o mance. In en ion becomes he undamen al elemen owa ds explaining beha iou . I indica es he e o ha he pe son will make o ca y ou ha en ep eneu ial beha iou (Liñán, 2004). And so, i cap u es he h ee mo i a ional ac o s ha in luence beha iou , which a e he ollowing (Ajzen, 1991): - Pe cei ed beha iou al con ol would be de ined as he pe cep ion o he easiness o di icul y in he ul ilmen o he beha iou o in e es (becoming an en ep eneu ). I is, he e o e, a concep qui e simila o pe cei ed sel -e icacy (Bandu a, 1997). In he same way, i is also e y simila o Shape o & Sokol’s (1982) ision abou pe cei ed easibili y. In all h ee ins ances, he impo an hing is he sense o capaci y ega ding he ul ilmen o i m c ea ion beha iou s. - A i ude owa ds he beha iou e e s o he deg ee o which he indi idual holds a posi i e o nega i e pe sonal alua ion abou being an en ep eneu . - Pe cei ed social no ms would measu e he pe cei ed social p essu e o ca y ou -o no o ca y ou - ha en ep eneu ial beha iou . Figu e 1 En ep eneu ial in en ion model Sou ce: Liñán (2004: 15), Figu e 2. En ep eneu ial Knowledge Pe cei ed Feasibili y (sel -e icacy) Pe cei ed Desi abili y Pe sonal A i ude Pe cei ed Social No ms En ep eneu ial In en ion - 6 - These h ee elemen s would cons i u e he explana o y a iables o in en ion. Thei ela i e con ibu ions o he con igu a ion o in en ion a e no es ablished in he model, as hey may change om case o case. In pa icula , in he six een empi ical wo ks analyzed by Ajzen (1991), subjec i e no ms ended o con ibu e e y weakly o he in en ion o ca ying ou di e en beha iou s. Finally, he model assumes he exis ence o in e ac ions among he h ee explana o y elemen s. I we compa e hese explana o y a iables wi h hose conside ed by Shape o & Sokol (1982), we can see ha pe cei ed easibili y -as i has been men ioned abo e- co esponds qui e well wi h pe cei ed beha iou al con ol. On he o he hand, he willingness o ca y ou en ep eneu ial beha iou s (pe cei ed desi abili y) could be unde s ood as composed by he pe sonal a i ude and pe cei ed social no ms. In his sense, i may be emembe ed ha Shape o & Sokol (1982) conside ed desi abili y as a esul o social and cul u al in luences. Addi ionally, as shown in Figu e 1, a g ea e knowledge o he en ep eneu ial en i onmen will su ely con ibu e o mo e ealis ic pe cep ions abou he en ep eneu ial ac i i y and would help iden i y adequa e ole models. This la e elemen would ha e an in luence on pe cei ed easibili y and possibly on desi abili y as well (Sche e e al., 1991). In gene al, g ea e knowledge will also di ec ly p o ide a g ea e awa eness abou he exis ence o ha p o essional ca ee op ion, and will make he in en ion o become an en ep eneu mo e c edible. 3. DEVELOPMENT OF THE ENTREPRENEURIAL INTENTION QUESTIONNAIRE (EIQ) In his pape , he en ep eneu ial in en ion model is conside ed as an adequa e model o analyse he in en ion o become an en ep eneu . The e o e, an ins umen o measu e in en ions and he o he a iables in he model was needed. In a i s s age o his esea ch p ojec , we used a p elimina y e sion o he ques ionnai e which con ained mos ly yes/no ques ions o i ems wi h up o ou di e en esponse op ions (Liñán & Rod íguez, 2004). Resul s we e clea ly encou aging and ended o suppo he en ep eneu ial in en ion model de eloped. Howe e , alida ion o he ques ionnai e was no possible unde such condi ions. The e o e, he obus ness o esul s could no be con i med. Fo hose easons, a second e sion o he ques ionnai e was de eloped, speci ically designed o allow ull alida ion o he esea ch ins umen . Tha i s e sion was used as he basis o his EIQ, bu i has been ca e ully c oss-checked wi h hose ins umen s used by o he esea che s, such as Kol e eid (1996), K uege e al. (2000) o Veciana e al. (2000). Along he whole cons uc ion p ocess, Ajzen’s (1991, 2001, 2002) wo k has been ca e ully e ised o sol e any disc epancy ha migh ha e a isen be ween he di e en ins umen s. The EIQ is a ailable om he au ho upon eques . Whene e possible, i ems ha e been buil as 7-poin like - ype scales. In pa icula , his has been ue o he pa o he EIQ measu ing hose la en a iables ha a e cen al o he en ep eneu ial in en ion model: i.e., en ep eneu ial knowledge, pe sonal a ac ion, social no ms, sel -e icacy and in en ion. The EIQ has been di ided in en sec ions. Sec ions wo o six co esponds wi h he elemen s in he en ep eneu ial in en ion model (see Figu e 1). Wi hin hem, all i ems adjus o he like - ype so o ques ion. - 7 - The i s (educa ion and expe ience) and nin h (pe sonal da a) sec ions ask o demog aphic a iables ha should no a ec in en ion di ec ly, bu could be e y use ul in iden i ying hei e ec on pe cei ed con ol, a i udes, social no ms, and knowledge. Besides, in sec ion h ee we ha e also asked in e iewees o a e hei knowledge o en ep eneu s and hei pe cep ions abou how good hose en ep eneu s a e. As Sche e e al. (1991) poin ou , ha ing access o ole models is one key elemen in explaining en ep eneu ship. Howe e , i canno be seen in isola ion om he o he key aspec ega ding he alua ion made abou how success ul hose en ep eneu s a e. In his pape , in e iewees’ e alua ions o hei ole models ha e been included in he analysis oge he wi h demog aphic a iables. The ques ionnai e also includes a se en h sec ion cen ed on en ep eneu ial objec i es. I s pu pose is o analyse s uden s’ concep o “success” and he impo ance hey a ach o business de elopmen and g ow h. Guzmán & San os (2001) de ined en ep eneu ial quali y as he beha iou s pe o med o de elop he i m and make i dynamic. This sec ion ies o measu e he in en ion o pe o m such beha iou s. The eigh h sec ion asked abou pa icipa ion in en ep eneu ship educa ion cou ses and he ex en o which i has helped inc ease en ep eneu ial in en ion o in e iewees, o any o he an eceden s o in en ion. Finally, in sec ion en, we asked s uden s o olun a ily p o ide con ac da a so as hey may be s udied again a e some ime. This ollow-up will hope ully allow o u u e analysis o he in en ion-beha iou ela ionship. Going back in o he cen al in en ion-model elemen s, he sec ion on pe sonal a ac ion includes impo an di e ences wi h he mos comp ehensi e p e ious a emp o de elop a alida ed in en ion measu e. In Kol e eid's (1996) ques ionnai e, a belie -based measu e o pe sonal a ac ion was used, consis ing o in e iewee’s alua ion o di e en easons o choosing one ca ee op ion (en ep eneu ship) ins ead o he o he (o ganiza ional employmen ). Howe e , Ajzen's (1991, 2001) s a es ha belie s a e he an eceden s o a i udes, and sugges s using an agg ega e measu e o a i udes (belie s would explain ha a i ude, while a i ude would explain in en ion). In his sense, K uege e al. (2000) use such a design, wi h belie s explaining an agg ega e measu e o a i ude, while his la e a iable was used o explain in en ion. Seman ic di e en ials scales could be used o measu e agg ega e pe sonal a i ude owa ds en ep eneu ship. Co ela ions be ween he agg ega e and belie -based measu es a e some imes disappoin ing (Ajzen, 1991: 192). Fo his eason, we ha e chosen an agg ega e measu e o a i ude in he EIQ. Ano he main di e ence wi h Kol e eid’s (1996) s udy is he conside a ion o sala ied wo k. In ou iew, a pe son may be a ac ed owa ds bo h en ep eneu ship and o ganiza ional employmen , hough maybe o di e en deg ees. In his sense, some e idence sugges s ha indi iduals may simul aneously be pa - ime en ep eneu s and employees, and no necessa ily o a sho ime (Ca e e al., 1996). In he EIQ, his has been accoun ed o by asking esponden s o a e hei p e e ence owa ds bo h op ions a di e en i ems. Besides, a hi d i em (p e e ence o being a libe al p o essional) was also included o s ess he idea ha he op ions a e no opposed. Pe cei ed social alua ion, acco ding o Ajzen (1991), should be app oached h ough an agg ega e measu e o he kind "wha do impo an o he s hink?" The e o e, we ha e used wo such ques ions. Besides, we ha e also used an agg ega e seman ic di e en ial scale o wha we could call “social clima e”, asking - 8 - indi iduals o a e se e al i ems abou he exis ence o social obs acles o becoming an en ep eneu . En ep eneu ial pe cei ed capaci y ha e been measu ed by gene al sel -e icacy and also by speci ic sel -e icacies. The i s o hese wo measu es has been used as he e e ence o alida ion pu poses. I includes gene al s a emen s abou he eeling o capaci y ega ding i m c ea ion, and in e iewee’s a e asked o a e hei le el o ag eemen . In mo e ecen wo k Ajzen (2002) conside s ha pe cei ed beha iou al con ol is a concep somewha wide han sel -e icacy. I would also include a measu e o con ollabili y ( he ex en o which success ully pe o ming he beha iou is up o he pe son). Fo his eason, we ha e included an i em in he gene al sel - e icacy measu e in his sense. Speci ic abili ies, on he o he hand, ha e been used o measu e he di e en domains in which esponden s eel mo e able. These six abili ies ha e been ex ac ed om he li e a u e (De Noble e al., 1999; Ki by, 2003; Gibb, 1998). Rega ding in en ion, i has been measu ed h ough a seman ic di e en ial scale wi h gene al sen ences indica ing di e en aspec s o in en ion. Howe e , as i is e y common o ind o he s udies ha use a "ha e you conside ed" ques ion (K uege e al., 2000; Veciana e al. 2000), addi ionally o he scale, he ollowing yes/no ques ion has been included: “Ha e you e e se iously conside ed becoming an en ep eneu ?”. Answe s o his ques ion will no be used o alida e he ques ionnai e, bu migh be use ul o compa ison pu poses. 4. VALIDATION OF THE ENTREPRENEURIAL INTENTION QUESTIONNAIRE Valida ion o he EIQ has been ca ied ou on a sample o las yea uni e si y s uden s o business and economics. Selec ion o his sample has been made on h ee g ounds. Fi s ly, i is e y common o ind empi ical li e a u e using hese s uden s. In pa icula , ega ding esea ch on en ep eneu ial in en ions, some pape s using his kind o samples may be: Au io e al. (1997), Tkache & Kol e eid (1999), Fayolle & Gailly (2004), oge he wi h he abo e-men ioned Kol e eid (1996), K uege e al. (2000) o Veciana e al. (2000). Secondly, las yea uni e si y s uden s a e abou o en e he segmen o he popula ion showing highes endency owa ds becoming an en ep eneu ; i.e., hose belonging o he 25-34 age-g oup, and wi h uni e si y s udies (Reynolds e al., 2002). Finally, hey a e abou o ace hei p o essional ca ee choice, so hey me answe he EIQ mo e consciously. The sample was ob ained om he wo public uni e si ies in Se ille. This is he la ges me opoli an a ea in sou he n Spain, wi h 1.3 million inhabi an s. Uni e si y o Se ille is qui e la ge and old. On he o he hand, Pablo Ola ide Uni e si y is only en yea s old and much smalle . The ield-wo k was ca ied ou in Oc obe and No embe 2004. We con ac ed co e-module coo dina o s asking hem some o hei class- ime o ca y ou he su ey. Be o e comple ion o he ques ionnai e, s uden s we e gi en an explana ion abou he main pu pose o he esea ch and we e eminded ha comple ion was comple ely op ional. Thus, only hose s uden s no en olled in he modules (ha ing al eady passed hem) o no a ending classes ha pa icula day we e le ou . In his manne , we collec ed 354 ques ionnai es, 31 o hem om Pablo Ola ide Uni e si y, and he 323 emaining ones om Uni e si y o Se ille. 69.2% o he sample co esponds o Business Science s uden s, he es being Economics. In his sense, all o he s uden s om Pablo Ola ide Uni e si y a e s udying business, as he - 9 - deg ee in economics is no on o e he e. 55% o he in e iewees a e emale, while he a e age age is 23.7 yea s old. Valida ion o he EIQ was ca ied ou o he i e cons uc s used in he en ep eneu ial in en ion model (see Figu e 1). In pa icula , ques ions 7 and 8 we e included o accoun o knowledge o he business ins i u ional amewo k. They ask s uden s abou hei amilia i y wi h associa ions, public assis ance bodies and suppo measu es. Table 1 En ep eneu ial In en ion Ques ionnai e (EIQ) ac o analysis(a) Fac o 1 2 3 4 5 7a Know associa ion ,533 7b Know suppo body ,660 8a Know aining ,790 8b Know loans ,812 8c Know assis ance ,854 8d Know cen es ,684 8e Know se ices ,756 9b c ea e i m ,492 10c en ep eneu ,724 11a pe sonal a ac ion ,698 11b pe sonal a ac ion ,794 11c pe sonal a ac ion ,845 11d pe sonal a ac ion ,853 11e pe sonal a ac ion ,827 13a amily ,450 13b iends 1,015 13c pee s ,686 15a sel -e icacy ,691 15b sel -e icacy ,830 15c sel -e icacy ,916 15d sel -e icacy ,642 15e sel -e icacy ,741 15 sel -e icacy ,716 18a in en ion ,646 18b in en ion ,789 18c in en ion ,795 18d in en ion ,881 18e in en ion ,677 18 in en ion ,794 Ex ac ion me hod: Maximum Likelihood. Ro a ion Me hod: P omax wi h Kaise No maliza ion. Fac o s loadings 0.40 o smalle no shown. (a) Con e gence eached a e 6 i e a ions. The second cons uc was ep esen ed by wo sepa a e i ems plus a pe sonal a ac ion scale. Ques ion 9 asks “wha would you like o do immedia ely a e s udies