Entrepreneurial Intent amongst Business Students: A Perspective in Bhutan

Abstract

Entrepreneurship in Bhutan is an emerging phenomenon both in terms of research and practice. Entrepreneurship is viewed as an alternative strategy to mitigate the rising youth unemployment problems. Against this backdrop, this research examines the entrepreneurial intent of the undergraduate business students in Bhutan. Perceived support, perceived barrier, attitude towards entrepreneurship and educational programme constitute determinants to examine the variation in the students’ entrepreneurial intent. The participants of the research include the second and the final year undergraduate business students of the Royal University of Bhutan from both the business programmes of Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) and Bachelor of Commerce (B.Com) (n=300). A proportionate convenience sampling was applied where 30% students from every class were chosen to participate in the research. Self-administered survey questionnaires were used to elicit information. The multiple linear regression analysis has been used to analyse the data which shows that the four predictors explain 42.9% of the variation in the entrepreneurial intent of the students. The attitude towards entrepreneurship is the significant predictor. This research is amongst the initial studies conducted on entrepreneurial intent in the Bhutanese context and brings a newer perspective in the understanding of entrepreneurial intent among the present youth.