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Understanding the Entrepreneurship Ecosystem in Higher Education: A Mindmap Approach
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Extant Models of Entrepreneurial Behavior
Prior entrepreneurship research has positioned various individual characteristics as contributors to entrepreneurial activity. These contributing factors include personality traits, skills, knowledge, work experience, and motivations, (De Martino and Barbato, 2003; Wright et al., 2004; Rosa and Dawson, 2006; Fritsch and Krabel, 2012; Caliendo and Kritikos, 2012). These aspects could be identified and fostered by educational institutions (Dhliwayo, 2008).
The connection between personality traits and entrepreneurial activity is heavily disputed, however, given the lack of conclusiveness in the research (Rauch and Frese, 2007; Zhao et al., 2010). There is no "average entrepreneur" (Gartner 1985; 1988). As a result, research has shifted towards the identification of knowledge, skills, and experience characteristics, all within the aegis of entrepreneurial competence (Sarasvathy, 2001; Markowska, 2011). Knowledge is defined as understanding acquired through education and experience; skills are experientially-acquired procedural knowledge; and ability is the aptitude to use knowledge and skills. (Sarasvathy, 2001). The concept of prior knowledge is closely related to that of prior experience, as higher levels of prior knowledge refers to entrepreneurs' familiarity with, or having information about, the market, industry, technology, and customer demand (Baron, 2006; Hisrich, Langan-Fox, and Grant, 2007; Tang, Kacmar, and Busenitz, 2012).
Competence research seeks to understand the ability to effectively interact with the environment (Mitchelmore and Rowley, 2010). In addition to knowledge and technical skills, competence requires the development of appropriate attitudes and motives, social skills, and insights (Johannisson 1991). Entrepreneurial attitude research focuses on the self-perception or beliefs about one's knowledge or skills or self-efficacy. Self-efficacy pertains to an individual's conscious beliefs in their own abilities and skills necessary to perform a particular task (Bandura 1986). Interestingly, individuals are drawn to tasks that they believe they perform well and consciously avoid tasks that they seem to perform poorly (Forbes, 2005). As...