Abstract:
Entrepreneurship is an important solution to the employment difficulty of university students by guiding them to organize
a new business venture. The present study focused on the entrepreneurial support factors that were assumed to have
an impact on entrepreneurial intention through university student’s personal attitude and perceived behavioral control in
Faculty of Commerce and Management, Eastern University, Sri Lanka. Theory of Planned Behavior Model is used as a
theoretical framework. Contextual factors which are relational, educational and structural supports are considered as
backgrounds of personal attitude and perceived behavioral control, in return, they are expected to have an impact on
entrepreneurial intention. The quantitative study conducted based on primary data which was collected among 300
graduate and undergraduate students by using self-administrated and electronic questionnaire. Proposed relations
were tested through series of regression analysis, based on the results, relational and educational supports predicted
the personal attitude. Relational support predicted the perceived behavioural control. Based on the present model
relational support, personal attitude and perceived behavioural control are the predictors to the entrepreneurial
intention. Mediating effects were tested by using the Baron and Kenny’s approach. According to result of this study
found that, personal attitude and perceived behavioral control partially mediates the relationship between contextual
support factors and entrepreneurial intention. Consequently, these research findings have provided some useful insight
and feedback to educators and policy makers to improve and understanding of graduate and undergraduate student’s
entrepreneurial intention.
