Entrepreneurial intentions and the role of educational and social support: do the self-efficacy and the theory of planned behavior variables matter?

Purpose-The study aims to ascertain whether educational and social support for entrepreneurs significantlyaffects university students'intentions to become successful entrepreneurs. This study examines the mediating role ofthe Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) variables (e.g. entrepreneurial personal attitude, subjective norms andentrepreneurial perceived behavioral control) and entrepreneurial self-efficacy in encouraging young entrepreneurs. Design/methodology/approach-An online survey with a structured questionnaire collected data fromdifferent university students in Bangladesh; subsequently, it was analyzed through the structural equation model. Findings-The results suggested that educational support has a direct positive relationship with the threevariables of TPB. Moreover, thefindings indicated that social support positively influences the variables of TPB, entrepreneurial self-efficacy and entrepreneurial intentions. The variables of TPB and entrepreneurialself-efficacy were found to have a significant direct impact on entrepreneurial intentions and also exhibitedfavorable mediating effects of educational and social support on entrepreneurial intentions. Research limitations/implications-First, the study is only generalized to some sectors of entrepreneurshipactivities because the researchers used samples from university students across Bangladesh. Second, the implicitlimitation of survey-based research is that respondents need to know more ways of understanding thequestionnaires accurately, and some participants need to be taught how to answer the question items. Practical implications-The main practical implication for the relationship between entrepreneurialintentions and educational support involves different entrepreneurial educational programs, which give rise toattitude, behavior, self-efficacy and intentions and enhance the student's awareness of advancing a successfulentrepreneurial career. Social implications-This study demonstrated that universities and social communities should promote theimprovement of innovative thoughts for entrepreneurs and offer essential information about entrepreneurship. Originality/value-Because entrepreneurial educational support is a crucial factor in entrepreneurialintentions, universities need to develop a practical education system that can help improve the skills requiredto start new ventures. The results will improve a new route to developing students'entrepreneurial intentionsusing the variables of TPB and entrepreneurial self-efficacy. Subsequently, these researchfindings will help toachieve governmental goals and increase the number of startups in the future.