Education in entrepreneurship and the Theory of Planned Behaviour

Purpose – The purpose of the present empirical study is to investigate the relationship between education in entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial behaviour and compare the effectiveness of frequently used entrepreneurship education teaching approaches. Design/methodology/approach – Hypotheses are derived from the “Theory of Planned Behaviour” (“TPB”), which suggests that education in entrepreneurship is positively related to attitude (“A”), subjective norm (“SN”) and perceived behavioural control (“PBC”); that the effect on A, SN and PBC is stronger for extensive courses in entrepreneurship than for more superficial forms of educational efforts; and that education only influences entrepreneurial intentions indirectly through the effect on A, SN and PBC. The hypotheses are tested using data from two different surveys, one from Belgium and one from Norway. Findings – None of the hypotheses are supported. However, the findings from the study indicate a strong direct relationship between participation in extensive education programmes in entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial intention. Research limitations/implications – Additional empirical evidence would be required to confirm these results and help to improve our understanding of the validity bounds of the TPB in the field of entrepreneurship. Practical implications – The findings indicate that educational programs or events of limited duration have a rather limited usefulness and that efforts should rather be directed on programs of longer duration. This would, for instance, speak for a re-orientation of some policies like those financing short seminars on venture creation for unemployed people. Originality/value – Using data from two different surveys, one from Belgium and one from Norway, this study raises questions about the sufficiency of the TPB.