Assessment of key factors in business students’ entrepreneurial intentions using importance-performance map analysis (IPMA)

Nunez del Arco-Vivanco W.; Romani-Torres R. · Cogent Business and Management (2026) · DOI: 10.1080/23311975.2026.2666943

Resumen

Entrepreneurial intention (EI) is a key antecedent of new venture creation among university students and has been explained through cognitive and social perspectives. Prior research has identified multiple antecedents of entrepreneurial intention; however, findings remain fragmented and inconsistent regarding how educational, affective, and sustainability-related factors jointly operate within EI models. While some studies suggest that environmental awareness is positively associated with EI, others report weak or context-dependent effects, leaving its relevance in educational settings insufficiently clarified. This study examines how entrepreneurial education (EE), entrepreneurial passion (EP), subjective norms (SN), entrepreneurial self-efficacy (ESE), risk propensity (RP), environmental awareness (EA) are associated with EI. Data from 482 students enrolled in private universities in Peru were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) complemented by Importance-Performance Map Analysis (IPMA). The results indicate that EP is strongly associated with EI and acts as mediating mechanism in the relationship between EE and EI. SN and ESE further mediate the relationship between EE and EP, highlighting EE as an antecedent linked to cognitive, social, and affective mechanisms. In contrast, EA and RP do not exhibit significant relationships with EI, sustainability-related orientations require deeper pedagogical integration. This study advances a framework for understanding entrepreneurial intention in higher education.

Instituciones: Universidad de Lima