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International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE)
Volume 1, Issue 9, September 2014, PP 106-117
ISSN 2349-0373 (Print) & ISSN 2349-0381 (Online)
www.arcjournals.org
©ARC Page 106
Entrepreneurial Competences and Entrepreneurial Intentions
of Students in Primary Education
Helen Tsakiridou
Faculty of Education Department of Primary
Education, University of Western Macedonia
Florina, Greece
etsakir@uowm.gr
Konstantinos Stergiou
Faculty of Education Department of Primary
Education, University of Western Macedonia
Florina, Greece
konstergiou@uowm.gr
Abstract: The purpose of the present study is to measure the entrepreneurial competences of primary
school students in Greece and to examine their potential in becoming entrepreneurs in the future. The study
used official data from 358 students of Primary Schools in the prefecture of Western Macedonia in Greece.
The analysis was focused on the measurement of student’s entrepreneurial competences by measuring their
cognitive entrepreneurial skills (Knowledge) and their non cognitive entrepreneurial skills (attitudes and
skills) and also their willingness to become entrepreneurs. Results show the 51.6% of the students are not
negative for an entrepreneurial initiative in the future. Also, students have developed a good level of
knowledge in the entrepreneurial field answering correctly more than half of the cognitive questions
(54.75%). Concerning the non cognitive skills, the skills of Pro-activity, Persistence, Need for Achievement,
Social Orientation, Motivating, Self Efficacy and Analyzing are the most developed skills in a level more
than 60% while the skills of creativity (57.03%) and Risk Taking (16.93%) seem weaker.
Keywords: Entrepreneurial Competences, Entrepreneurship Education, Primary School, Entrepreneurial
Intentions.
1. INTRODUCTION
The last years there is a great emphasis on the field of entrepreneurship education in the
educational systems of the most European countries (Vestergaard, Moberg and Jørgensen).
National educational systems are facing new challenges as entrepreneurship education and,
consequently, its effectiveness measurements are to be brought in. The European Union has stated
entrepreneurship as one of the key competences for Europeans. To achieve these challenges EU
has named entrepreneurial skills, encouraging entrepreneurship by fostering the right mindset and
awareness of career opportunities as an entrepreneur, as goals and methods for European
education system (European Commission). The aim of entrepreneurship education is to give
students the attitudes, knowledge and skills to act in an entrepreneurial way. In the primary
education, even if entrepreneurship is rarely included in the national curriculum of most of the
European countries, there are efforts foreseeing the encouragement of light entrepreneurial skills
which in the future can be considered as the base for the development of real entrepreneurial
skills. The ‗European frame‘ in 2006 defined eight basic competences which are considered as
essentials for the personal completion and development of every European citizen, defining the
‗Entrepreneurial initiative‘ as one of those (Eurydice network). The sense of initiative in
entrepreneurship is referred as the ability to transform ideas in action including, creativity,
innovation, risk taking and also the ability of planning in order the targets to be succeeded in an
effective way. This study is trying to examine if and in which level a student in the last year of the
primary education has developed the competence of taking entrepreneurial initiatives and how
this is being succeeded. The purpose of this study is to examine if the primary education students
have participated in entrepreneurship courses (Entrepreneurship education), the competences they
have developed and their level and a variety of cognitive and non-cognitive Entrepreneurial skills
(Entrepreneurial behavior) (Unger, Rauch and Frese). Also, it aims to increase awareness of
entrepreneurship as a possible career opportunity in the future but also student‘s perceptions about
it (Intentions-Aspirations-Ambitions for the future).
Helen Tsakiridou & Konstantinos Stergiou
International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE) Page 107
2. THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
As globalization and structural changes in the economy continue to confront the European Union
with new challenges, there is a shift on Europe‘s comparative advantage towards knowledge-
based activities. Each citizen, in order to be able to adapt flexibly to this rapidly changing and
highly interconnected world, will need a wide range of key competences. In this frame, the dual
role of education, both social and economic, is recognized as a key role which ensures that
Europe's citizens can be able to acquire these necessary key competences. At European level,
eight key competences have been defined, which represent a combination of knowledge, skills
and attitudes that are considered necessary for personal fulfilment and development. Active
citizenship; social inclusion; and employment, Communication in the mother tongue;
Communication in foreign languages; Mathematical competence and basic competences in
science and technology; Digital competence; Learning to learn; Social and civic competences;
Sense of initiative and entrepreneurship; and Cultural awareness and expression are all
considered equally important, because each of them can contribute to a successful life in a
knowledge society (2006/962/EC). Focusing more on the economic changes and the need for all
citizens to be able to adapt in the global competitive market the Sense of initiative and
entrepreneurship seems to have a more clear and important role. These economic changes have
led to opportunities for new entrepreneurial initiative, making Europe‘s competitiveness,
innovation and economic growth depend on being able to produce future leaders with the skills
and attitudes to be entrepreneurial in their professional lives, whether by creating their own
companies or innovating in larger organizations (Wilson). Trying to make a success of the Lisbon
strategy for growth and employment, Europe needs to stimulate the entrepreneurial mindsets of
young people, encourage innovative business start-ups, and foster a culture that is friendlier to
entrepreneurship and to the growth of small and medium-sized businesses (Expert Group). More
specifically, since the Lisbon Agenda of 2000, the Commission and Member States have sought
to develop greater levels of entrepreneurial activity across Europe and, in turn, identified the
primary role of entrepreneurship education in supporting such an outcome.
3. ENTREPRENEURSHIP EDUCATION
Entrepreneurship education introduces entrepreneurship as a career choice, it supports the
entrepreneurial way of seeing and doing things and it characterizes a way of teaching and learning
(Steyaert and Katz), (Berglund and Johansson). As entrepreneurship education is the first and
arguably the most important step for embedding an innovative culture in Europe, in recent years,
there has been an intensified focus in this area from most of the European countries (Vestergaard,
Moberg and Jørgensen). In order to explain this increasing focus on entrepreneurship education
Jack and Anderson distinguish three factors that increase the demand for this specific educational
field: the first factor refers to the interest of the governments in the introduction of
entrepreneurship education and the creation of new job opportunities that arise through
entrepreneurship. The second factor is the interest of the students on receiving entrepreneurship
education in all educational levels. This increase on the demand is explained by the fact that there
is a higher potential of the students on creating their own entrepreneurial activities, encouraged by
the fact that researches show that there is high and positive correlation between entrepreneurship
education and entrepreneurial initiatives in general (Vasiliadis, Vitsilaki and Efthimiou). One step
further, students consider this educational field of a great importance in order to be able to work
as effective staff members of an enterprise, which makes this norm not to concern only potential
entrepreneurs but also includes people that are willing to be future staff members on enterprises.
The third factor is the sector that offers educational services trying to cover the above demand
sources trying to supply more educational programs, differentiated both on level and subject.
Nevertheless, there is a question that preoccupies the researchers. This question is if
entrepreneurship can be taught, that is, if entrepreneurship can be an educational field in formal or
non formal educational frame. Business educators and professionals have evolved beyond the
myth that entrepreneurs are born, not made. Peter Drucker, recognized as one of the leading
management thinkers of our time, has said, ―The entrepreneurial mystique? It‘s not magic, it‘s not
mysterious, and it has nothing to do with the genes. It‘s a discipline. And, like any discipline, it
can be learned‖ (Drucker). Thus, the basic assumption where all the interest of entrepreneurship
education relies on is that entrepreneurship by itself and also the entrepreneurial skills can be
taught (Oodterbeek, Praag and Ijsselstein), (Petridou and Sarri). The researches seem to have two
Entrepreneurial Competences and Entrepreneurial Intentions of Students in Primary Education
International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE) Page 108
approaches on how entrepreneurship can be taught. The first one refers to the possibility that
entrepreneurship can be an educational subject and the second refers to the possibility that
entrepreneurship education can undertake on the development of personal characteristics of a
person and the improvement of the competences for developing new entrepreneurial initiatives.
According to the second one, entrepreneurship education should support the students‘ to try more
persistently to achieve their goals, to be creative, to discover existing opportunities and in general
to cope with the complicated society. This education involves the development of attitudes,
behaviors, skills and attributes applied individually and/or collectively to help individuals and
organizations of all kinds to create, cope with and enjoy change and innovation (Gibb), (Frank).
This approach is very close to the definition according to the recommendation of the European
parliament and of the Council of Europe corresponding key competence is the following: ‗Sense
of initiative and entrepreneurship refers to an individual's ability to turn ideas into action. It
includes creativity, innovation and risk-taking, as well as the ability to plan and manage projects
in order to achieve objectives. This supports individuals, not only in their everyday lives at home
and in society, but also in the workplace in being aware of the context of their work and being
able to seize opportunities, and is a foundation for more specific skills and knowledge needed by
those establishing or contributing to social or commercial activity. This should include awareness
of ethical values and promote good governance.‘ Entrepreneurship education is currently being
promoted in most European countries. Several different approaches have been adopted like
specific strategies/action plans focused exclusively on the integration of entrepreneurship
education, broader educational or economic strategies which incorporate objectives for
entrepreneurship education and individual or multiple initiatives related to entrepreneurship
education (Eurydice network). In Greece, entrepreneurship education is part of the strategy for the
New School (2010), which follows the educational strategic objectives common to the EU, among
which is improving innovation, creativity and entrepreneurial spirit. Concerning primary
education, the important role of education in promoting more entrepreneurial attitudes and
behaviors, starting even at primary school, is now widely recognized. Even if entrepreneurship is
rarely included in the national curriculum of the European countries, there are important efforts
that foresee the development of light competences that can be considered as a prerequisite for the
development of entrepreneurial competences in the future (Expert Group). In primary education,
about two thirds of countries (or regions within countries) explicitly recognize entrepreneurship
education and, in these countries, the cross-curricular approach prevails. Under this approach,
rather than being explicitly mentioned as part of a particular subject, entrepreneurship objectives
are expressed as being transversal, horizontal or cross-curricular. They form part of the values and
competences to be developed throughout all subjects and curriculum activities. The most
European educational systems the last years have implemented entrepreneurship education in
their national curriculums in primary education level. Even if entrepreneurship is not generally
taught as a separate subject there is a strategy that focuses on the development of entrepreneurial
spirit to the students for creating entrepreneurial competences. (Eurydice network). In recent years
a number of evaluation studies have addressed whether entrepreneurship education is effective in
reaching its stated goals (Huber, Sloof and Van Praag). Results show that efforts already being
done in primary education in some countries (e.g. Greece) are not enough and more long-lasting
plans coherent with the future goals of entrepreneurship education should be considered
(Tsakiridou and Stergiou). Resuming, education can help the development of entrepreneurship
(Mitra and Manimala). Promoting entrepreneurial skills and attitudes education in
entrepreneurship provides benefits to society even beyond their application to new business
ventures. In a broad sense, entrepreneurship should be considered as a general attitude that can be
usefully applied in all working activities and in everyday life, such as creativity and innovation
(Sarri, Bakouros and Petridou). Everyone may at some stage need to become an entrepreneur, or
to display entrepreneurial behavior or to have the opportunity of creating his/her own business
regardless of background or location (EU Commission).
4. ENTREPRENEURIAL COMPETENCES
As competence, in general, is considered one‘s ability to succeed a specific result, with the least
effort and use of time. The competences are not innate in people, but are developed through
education and practice. Concerning the Entrepreneurial competences many researchers have tried
to clarify their definition. Hisrich and Peters consider an entrepreneurship competence as the
Helen Tsakiridou & Konstantinos Stergiou
International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE) Page 109
ability of someone to create something new, putting time and effort, while taking in consideration
economic, psychological and social risk, but also receiving the benefits from the economic and
the personal satisfaction and independence. Olagunju says that an entrepreneurial competence is
one‘s ability to take advantage of an idea and to create an entrepreneurial initiative, not only for
making personal profit but also social and development one. In this study, entrepreneurial
competences are defined as a combination of knowledge, skills and attitudes appropriate to the
context of entrepreneurship. As the overall goal of entrepreneurship education is to give students
these attitudes, knowledge and skills to act in an entrepreneurial way many researchers are trying
to estimate the possible effect that cognitive and non cognitive skills might have on
entrepreneurship. Heinonen and Poikkijoki have created a model which categorizes the broad
dimensions of entrepreneurship providing a framework for the wide range of specific learning
outcomes adopted by European countries. In this model, both attitudes and skills belong to the
non cognitive entrepreneurial skills whether knowledge to the cognitive skills.
4.1 Non Cognitive Entrepreneurial Skills
According to the recommendation of the European parliament and of the Council an
entrepreneurial attitude is characterized by initiative, pro-activity, independence and innovation in
personal and social life, as much as at work. It also includes motivation and determination to meet
objectives, whether personal goals or aims held in common with others, including at work. As
mentioned above, in the model of Heinonen and Poikkijoki in the category attitudes, self-
awareness and self-confidence are the entrepreneurial attitudes which constitute the basis for all
other aspects of entrepreneurship. They entail discovering and trusting in one's own abilities
which then allow individuals to turn their creative ideas into action, something also spotted by
Shane who notes that self-efficacy is important for becoming an entrepreneur because confidence
in one's own ability increases the willingness to pursue entrepreneurial opportunities. Also in this
category taking initiative and risk taking, critical thinking, creativity and problem solving are also
fundamental, but they are also specific attributes of an ‗enterprising self‘. The taking risks attitude
is inherent to entrepreneurship because in economic life, with millions of individual or collective
factors influencing it daily, no one can predict with absolute certainty what will be the
development of it will be. In most researches the need for success is one of the most frequent
entrepreneurial characteristics (Gürol and Atsan) and the stronger predictor of entrepreneurship
(Pillis and Reardon). A common research from Caliendo, Fossen and Kritikos mentions that there
are two attitudes that traditionally are associated with both entrepreneurial intentions and
performance, are ―need for success‖ and ―low risk aversion‖. According to McClelland people
that these two attitudes are more responsible, set high goals, take risks and threats into
consideration and take feedback from their performance. In the next category, Skills relate to
proactive project management (involving, for example the ability to plan, organise, manage, lead
and delegate, analyse, communicate, de-brief, evaluate and record), effective representation and
negotiation, and the ability to work both as an individual and collaboratively in teams. The ability
to judge and identify one's strengths and weaknesses, and to assess and take risks as and when
warranted, is essential. Communication, presentation and planning skills as well as team work are
transversal skills essential to entrepreneurs. Furthermore, Davidsson and Honig have shown that
social skills, i.e., the ability to benefit from social connections, are important for becoming an
entrepreneur as well as for the success rate of making it through the start-up phase. Social skills
are very important because they give people the ability to create social relationships towards the
realization of one‘s ideas. Practical exploration of entrepreneurial opportunities includes the
various stages of the business set up process, including designing and implementing a business
plan. Also, energy, perseverance, creativity, hard work, leadership skills, ability to motivate are
essential elements for an entrepreneur. The questionnaire of this study, based on Rosendahl
Huber, Sloof, & Van Praag includes questions concerning nine non-cognitive skills that are all
commonly associated with entrepreneurship. These non-cognitive skills are: Self-efficacy: means
believing in your own ability, feeling self confident and in control of your own success. Need for
achievement: is the desire to do well in order to attain an inner feeling of personal
accomplishment. Risk taking: propensity reflects the predisposition towards risky alternatives, the
willingness to risk a loss and to deal with uncertainty. Social orientation: is the ability to make
useful connections in order to realize (new) ideas. Persistence: is the ability to continue despite
setbacks or objections. Motivating: is about inspiring and stimulating others. Analyzing: is the
Entrepreneurial Competences and Entrepreneurial Intentions of Students in Primary Education
International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE) Page 110
ability to assess different (complex) situations, to find solutions and to make correct, well-
balanced choices. Pro-activity: is the willingness to take action and the ability to tackle problems
and execute (new) ideas. Creativity: refers to the ability to generate many possible solutions to a
particular problem and to turn them into new opportunities. These separate skills are not solely
important for entrepreneurs, but are powerful predictors of social economic success in general
(Heckman, Hsse and Rubinstein), (Gensowski, Heckman and Savelyev), (Borghans, Duckworth
and Heckman). However, as described above, this combination of skills is known to be important
for successful entrepreneurship. We measure these entrepreneurial skills using validated self-
assessment tests.
4.2 Cognitive Entrepreneurial Skills
One of the desired results of the entrepreneurship education is the development of cognitive skills
that are relevant for entrepreneurship, like knowledge about what an entrepreneur does and what
it entails to run a business. As cognitive skills are considered the entrepreneurial skills that
concern knowledge in the field of entrepreneurship. According to the recommendation of the
European parliament and of the Council necessary knowledge includes the ability to identify
available opportunities for personal, professional and/or business activities, including ‗bigger
picture‘ issues that provide the context in which people live and work, such as a broad
understanding of the workings of the economy, and the opportunities and challenges facing an
employer or organization. Individuals should also be aware of the ethical position of enterprises,
and how they can be a force for good, for example through fair trade or through social enterprise.
The cognitive skills are necessary for an entrepreneur, as they concern the knowledge for
entrepreneurship, for enterprises and the entrepreneurial process in general (Hartog, Van Praag
and Van Der Sluis), (Unger, Rauch and Frese). More specifically, this knowledge is connected to
the functionality of the product, the satisfaction of the customers, the dynamics of the market, the
marketing mix, the financial institutes cooperating with, the return of business operation and the
legal system within they operate. Heinonen and Poikkijoki mention that the Knowledge of career
opportunities and the world of work are learning outcomes that are not exclusively related to
entrepreneurship, but usually form part of students‘ general preparation for their future career
choices. However, a sound knowledge of the nature of work and different types of work involve
an understanding of what it is to be an entrepreneur. This knowledge also allows students to
define and prepare their place in the world of work with a well developed awareness of
opportunities and constraints. Knowledge of business organization and processes is specific
knowledge of the environment in which entrepreneurship is often applied. In this study, a set of
ten specific multiple choice questions is used to measure the cognitive skills (knowledge) of
students. Examples are: "If a company makes less revenue by selling products or services than it
spends, it will... a) be registered at the stock market, b) make a profit, c) make a loss, d) have
debts", and "To set the price of a product you have to take into account... a) how much it costs to
make the product, b) how many products can be made in a certain amount of time, c) the price
that competitors ask for their products, d) all of the above". The development of these cognitive
entrepreneurial skills or knowledge was measured by the percentage of correct answers to these
questions (Rosendahl Huber, Sloof and Van Praag).
5. ENTREPRENEURIAL INTENTIONS
In this study, there is also an effort to measure the intentions of the students to become an
entrepreneur in their future life. Raising entrepreneurial intentions is one of the main goals of
entrepreneurship education in general and it is frequently used as an outcome measure in other
impact evaluation studies (Rosendahl Huber, Sloof and Van Praag). The measurement of
entrepreneurial intentions of a 12 year old student is difficult and no precedents are available to
indicate the validity or predictive power of any such measure. We used two different measures to
estimate the intention to start a business in the future. First, children were asked to write down
two jobs they might like for their future occupation. They were free to write any kind of job
without having a list and then we measured the percentage of the students wrote ‗entrepreneur‘ as
a possible future job. The measure of entrepreneurial intentions is the answer to the question: 'Do
you think that you would like to start your own company one day?'; The students had three
possible answers (yes, no or maybe) and we measured the answers proving a positive
entrepreneurial attitude comparing to the percentage of the ones that didn‘t.
Helen Tsakiridou & Konstantinos Stergiou
International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE) Page 111
6. AIM-METHOD
The purpose of the present study is to record primary education students‘ entrepreneurial
intentions and how these intentions can influence students‘ entrepreneurial competence. For the
purpose of the study a questionnaire was used to collect information from Primary Schools in the
prefecture of Western Macedonia in Greece. The questionnaire contained questions in order to
record primary education students‘ entrepreneurial intensions for the future, to examine if the
students have participated in entrepreneurship courses in school (Entrepreneurship Education), the
competences they have developed and in which level and a variety of cognitive and non-cognitive
Entrepreneurial skills (Entrepreneurial behaviour) (Vestergaard, Moberg and Jørgensen). Also, it
aims to increase awareness of entrepreneurship as a possible career opportunity in the future but
also student‘s perceptions about it (Intentions-Aspirations-Ambitions for the future). Data derived
from the questionnaires were analyzed by using descriptive statistical methods and the technique
of One-way ANOVA in order to examine the possible differences between students‘ intention for
the future and their cognitive and non-cognitive entrepreneurial skills.
7. SAMPLE
The sample has been chosen using stratified sampling method and consisted of 358 students (190
boys and 168 girls) of Primary Schools in the prefecture Western Macedonia in Greece.
8. RESULTS
Results show that only the 12.6% of the students responded that they are willing to become
entrepreneurs in the future, while, the majority of the students are not negative for an
entrepreneurial initiative in the future (49%). However, a significant percentage of the sample
(38.4%) responded that they don‘t imagine themselves as entrepreneurs. Concerning the cognitive
skills, even if students don‘t receive entrepreneurship courses they seem to have developed a good
level of knowledge in the entrepreneurial field they were examined during the study. Students
answered correctly more than half of the cognitive questions (M = 54.75% SD = 1.16%). More
specifically, the questions that were answered correctly by the vast majority of the students were
those asking, ‗Who is an entrepreneur‘ (89% correct responses), ‗What he or she does‘ (81,1%
correct responses), ‗How do you call the money that you get when you work in a company‘
(85.3% correct responses), ‗In which category does a company that produces posters belongs to‘
(79.7% correct responses) and ‗What happens when you spend more than you earn‘ (69.4%
correct responses). The questions that were a bit more economic oriented were the ones that
seemed to be a bit confusing for the students. More specifically concerning the question ‗How do
you call the money that a company gets from selling its service or product‘ 48% of the students
answered correctly (income) while the 46.7% understood it as ‗profit‘. For the responses
concerning the ‗renting and the salaries‘ that a company assumes, the 49% understood that they
are expenses while the 40% perceived them as income. A big diffusion of responses appeared to
the question ‗Which is the arithmetic operation for making profit‘, 47.1% of the students
responded correctly, while the 20.6%, the 22.1% and the 10.3% chose the other three choices that
were wrong. Also in the question ‗What is the aim of a company when it produces a product‘ 50%
chose the correct answer which was ‗combining the three other possible choices (making a
product, fast, cheap and with a high quality). The remaining 50% was between the three other
choices. Girls seem to have significantly higher entrepreneurial cognitive level than boys (t =
3.476, df = 156, p < .005) since they answer correctly the 60% of the questions on average (SD =
13%) while the boys respond correctly the 51.4% of the cognitive questions on average (SD =
16.2%), (Table 1).
Table 1. Means and Standard Deviations of the cognitive level according to students’ gender
Boys
Girls
Total
M
SD
M
SD
M
SD
Cognitive Skills
51,44%
16,20%
60,00%
13,04%
54,75%
15,59%
The cognitive skills factor is significantly affected by the entrepreneurial intention of the students
(F2,148 = 5,474, p < 0.01) and more specifically, students who responded that they would like to
become entrepreneurs in the future have a deeper level of knowledge on the entrepreneurial field
Entrepreneurial Competences and Entrepreneurial Intentions of Students in Primary Education
International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE) Page 112
(M = 59%, SD = 12.39%) compared to the students answered that they probably will become
entrepreneurs in the future (M = 53.85%, SD = 9.61%) and the ones who said that they are not
interested in the entrepreneurial initiative in the future (Μ = 51.03%, 16.83%) (Table 2).
Table 2. Means and Standard Deviations of the cognitive level according to students’ entrepreneurial
intention
Entrepreneurial intention
No
May be
Yes
M
SD
M
SD
M
SD
Cognitive skills
51.03%
16.83%
53.85%
9.61%
59.00%
12.39%
students responded to different groups of questions refer to the nine non cognitive entrepreneurial
skills as shown in Table 3.
Table 3. Means and Standard Deviations of the non-cognitive skills
Boys
Girls
Total
Non Cognitive Skills
M
SD
M
SD
M
SD
Self efficacy
72,11%
13,05%
66,00%
14,88%
69,74%
14,06%
Need for achievement
71,07%
10,87%
76,84%
12,72%
73,30%
11,92%
Risk taking
17,94%
5,21%
15,32%
5,34%
16,93%
5,40%
Social orientation
71,06%
14,66%
68,05%
13,90%
69,90%
14,40%
Persistence
74,68%
16,92%
75,17%
12,10%
74,87%
15,19%
Motivating
65,85%
11,52%
65,68%
18,28%
65,78%
14,45%
Analyzing
62,11%
17,35%
57,16%
17,21%
60,28%
17,41%
Pro activity
78,97%
12,03%
76,84%
18,12%
78,18%
14,56%
Creativity
59,95%
18,89%
52,60%
22,85%
57,03%
20,79%
The skill of Pro-activity is the most developed skill according to students perceptions (M =
78.18%, SD = 14.56), meaning that quite often they show willingness to take action in school
activities, show ability to tackle problems in the school or family environment or execute new
ideas. The rate of Pro-activity of students is relatively high and significantly affected by the
entrepreneurial intention factor (F2,144 = 10.949, p < 0.001). More specifically, students
responding that they would like to become entrepreneurs in the future are the students that have a
considerably higher level of Pro-activity (M = 84.40%, SD = 11.44%) comparing to the students
that are not sure of becoming entrepreneurs in the future (Μ = 79.23%, SD = 16.81%), while the
ones that don‘t want to become entrepreneurs are the students with the lowest level of Pro-activity
(Μ = 73.36%, SD = 14.43%), (Table 4). The skill of Persistence (M = 74.87%, SD = 15.19%)
proves the ability of students to continue their effort despite setbacks or objections. Students do
not give up trying finishing an exercise that they find difficult. They continue playing a game that
they don‘t feel skilled enough and they have the same attitude of Persistence when they feel tired
and they have not finished with their homework yet, as they decide not to give up. The Need for
Achievement is an also high developed skill (M = 73.3%, SD= 11.92%), proving that students
quite often are happy to get good grades, they feel disappointed when they are not able to finish
an exercise and they feel great when they do and also feel some kind of satisfaction when
finishing their task first in the class. The rate of the Need for Achievement is significantly higher (t
= 3.041, df = 156, p < .005) in girls (M = 76.84% SD = 12.72%) compared to boys (M = 71.07%
SD = 10.87%). Analysis shows that students have developed a satisfactory level of Social
Orientation (M = 69.90% 2.67 SD = 14.40%). Specifically, students feel comfortable in making
new friends and they are not shy when they meet other children for first time taking initiative to
talk first in a new social interaction. Also sometimes they feel that it is not that difficult to make
friends from other schools. The rate of Social Orientation of students is relatively high and
significantly affected by the entrepreneurial intention factor (F2,145 = 12.323, p < 0.001). More
specifically, students responding that they would like to become entrepreneurs in the future are
the students that have a considerably higher level of Social Orientation (M = 76.21%, SD =
12.89%) comparing to the students that are not sure of becoming entrepreneurs in the future (Μ =
73.08%, SD = 14.07%), while the ones that don‘t want to become entrepreneurs are the students
Helen Tsakiridou & Konstantinos Stergiou
International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE) Page 113
with the lowest level of Social Orientation (Μ = 64.68%, SD = 13.99%). skill of Motivating (M =
65.78%, SD = 14.45%) shows that the students feel quite often like inspiring and stimulating
others, believing that sometimes the other students choose them as leaders of a team, or listen
their ideas. Self efficacy skill is quite high (M = 69.74%, SD = 14.06%) meaning that students
believe in their own ability, they feel self confident and they are able to control their success.
Students responded that they often defend their opinion and they are able to try to answer in the
class a question that they are not certain for the answer. They don‘t change their opinion easily
when most of the other classmates have a different one. Also they feel confident when the teacher
has a question for them even if they have not studied enough. The rate of Self efficacy skill is
significantly affected by the entrepreneurial intention factor (F2,142 = 22.968, p < 0.001). More
specifically, students responding that they would like to become entrepreneurs in the future are
the students that have a considerably higher level of Self efficacy (M = 87.50%, SD = 5.10%)
comparing to the students that are not sure of becoming entrepreneurs in the future (Μ = 72.34%,
SD = 9.2%), while the ones that don‘t want to become entrepreneurs are the students with the
lowest level of Self efficacy (Μ = 64.02%, SD = 14.47%). The rate of Self efficacy is significantly
higher (t = 2.665, df = 150, p < .01) in boys (M = 72.11% SD = 13.05%) compared to girls (M =
66% SD = 14.88%). The skill of Analyzing (M = 60.28%, SD = 17.41%) is also comparatively
high showing that the ability to assess different (complex) situations, to find solutions and to
make correct, well-balanced choices is often emerging. The rate of Analyzing of students is
significantly affected by the entrepreneurial intention factor (F2,144 = 23.865, p < 0.001). Students
willing to become entrepreneurs in the future are the students that have a considerably higher
level of Analyzing (M = 78.21%, SD = 4.22%) comparing to the students that are not sure for a
future entrepreneurial initiative (Μ = 65.52%, SD = 15.17%), while students that don‘t see
themselves as entrepreneurs have the lowest level of Analyzing (Μ = 52.08%, SD = 16.05%). The
skill of Creativity is developed in a satisfactory level (M = 57.03% SD = 20.79%) and proves the
ability of the students to generate many possible solutions to a particular problem and to turn them
into new opportunities. Students said that they sometimes they try to solve mathematical problems
using another way than the usual one. Also they feel that they can think of a new game or think in
a different way in general. The rate of creativity is significantly higher (t = 2.172, df = 152, p <
.05) in boys (M = 59.95% SD = 18.89%) compared to girls (M = 52.60% SD = 22.85%). The skill
of Risk taking (M = 16.93%, SD = 5.40%) shows that only sometimes the students answer a
question in a test feeling not so sure about their response. Also the willingness to risk a loss or the
ability deal with uncertain situations appears sometimes. The rate of Risk taking is significantly
higher (t = 3.056, df = 156, p < .005) in boys (M = 17.94% SD = 5.21%) compared to girls (M =
15.32% SD = 5.34%).
Table 4. Means and Standard Deviations of the non - cognitive skills according to students’
entrepreneurial intention
Entrepreneurial intention
No
May be
Yes
M
SD
M
SD
M
SD
Self efficacy
64.02%
14.74%
72.34%
9.22%
87.50%
5.10%
Need for achievement
71.09%
12.03%
75.32%
11.13%
78.85%
10.69%
Risk taking
15.98%
4.82%
17.07%
4.16%
18.53%
6.22%
Social orientation
64.68%
13.99%
73.08%
14.07%
76.21%
12.89%
Persistence
72.50%
14.82%
75.51%
15.78%
76.92%
15.21%
Motivating
65.31%
15.11%
66.59%
13.17%
66.83%
7.82%
Analysing
52.08%
16.05%
65.52%
15.17%
78.21%
4.22%
Pro activity
73.36%
14.43%
79.23%
16.81%
84.40%
11.44%
Creativity
62,04%
22,18%
51,56%
20,03%
64,10%
4,00%
9. DISCUSSION
In Greece, even if entrepreneurship education is part of the strategy for the New School since
2010, it is explicitly recognized only in the last year of High School as part of the subject 'Basic
Principles of Organization and Business Administration' (Eurydice network). In the national
curriculum of the primary and early secondary education in Greece, there are no courses directly
related to entrepreneurship but only some references to it through other related subjects. Same
Entrepreneurial Competences and Entrepreneurial Intentions of Students in Primary Education
International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE) Page 114
situation in basic school level in Denmark, where there is no specific subject called
Entrepreneurship. Therefore entrepreneurship is integrated into the curriculum as an element or in
special activities which are often interdisciplinary (Vestergaard, Moberg and Jørgensen). In other
studies is also found out that entrepreneurship education in practice is rather limited since it is not
a part of normal schoolwork. Instead, separate programs and theme days are carried out to fulfil
the requirements set out in the curricula (Seikkula-Leino, Ruskovaara and Ikävalko). Thus, the
evaluation of measures that may stimulate successful entrepreneurship is a matter of high interest
to both academics and practitioners alike. One evident measure that is used worldwide concerns
entrepreneurship education programs. The evaluation studies that have been performed so far only
find modest effects at most. This seems to suggest that these programs are ineffective as a policy
tool to promote entrepreneurial intentions or competencies (Rosendahl Huber, Sloof and Van
Praag). Investments in cognitive skills are relatively more important during the pre-school years,
whereas the school years play an important role in the development of non-cognitive skills
(Rosendahl Huber, Sloof and Van Praag). This study depicts an important development of
cognitive entrepreneurial skills for the primary school students. Students seem to have developed
a good level of knowledge in the entrepreneurial field they were examined, answering correctly
more than half of the cognitive questions. Concerning the non cognitive skills, the most developed
ones seem to be the skill of Pro-activity which the most developed according to students‘
perceptions, the skill of Persistence, Self-efficacy skill the Need for achievement, Social
orientation. The skills that have not been developed so much, comparing to the previous ones are
the skill of Motivating, the skill of Analyzing, the skill of Creativity, and a bit lower the skill of
Risk taking.Also, trying to estimate the factor that possibly affect the entrepreneurial intention of
the students the results show that the Cognitive skills, the skill of Self-efficacy, the skills of Social
orientation, Analyzing and Pro-activity significantly affect the Entrepreneurial Intention of the
students meaning that students that have developed these skills more are more likely to undertake
entrepreneurial initiatives in the future, comparing to the students that have a lower level of
development of these skills. Common researches below recognize the effect of some of the above
and some other factors on students‘ Entrepreneurial Intentions. According to Shook, Bratianu;
Guerrero, Rialp, & Urbano; Liñán, Rodríguez-Cohard, & Ruenda-Cantuche, Self-efficacy is a
power or capacity to produce a desired effect, and is one of the key factors of the entrepreneurial
intention. Also, Sánchez states that Self-efficacy is an important determinant of successful
entrepreneurial behaviours. The research carried out by Sánchez proposes the similar results: the
main factors of entrepreneurial intention are personality traits, measured by Risk taking and Self-
efficacy. Risk taking is the tendency of an individual to take risks. The individuals who tolerate
higher risk are more inclined to entrepreneurship while the ones who tolerate lower risk are less
inclined to entrepreneurship. Common empirical research supports the theoretical proposition of a
positive correlation between risk attitudes and the decision to become an entrepreneur (see,e.g.,
Cramer, Hartog, Jonker, and Van Praag; Caliendo, Fossen, and Kritikos. Pro-activity or the
propensity to act is associated with entrepreneurial behavioural intentions (Pillis and Reardon),
(Segal, Borgia and Schoenfeld). Need for achievement is one of the widely-spread indicators
showing whether a person is inclined to entrepreneurship or not (Remeikiene, Startiene and
Dumciuviene). It can be concluded that entrepreneurial intention is mostly influenced by personal
factors (personality traits) that can be developed acquiring entrepreneurial education. The main
factors that affect the entrepreneurial intentions are: Self-efficacy, Risk taking, Behavioural
control, Need for achievement, Pro-activity, Locus of control (Remeikiene, Startiene and
Dumciuviene).
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AUTHORS’ BIOGRAPHY
Helen Tsakiridou is currently an Associate Professor of Applied Statistics
and Educational Research at the Department of Primary Education of the
University of Western Macedonia in Greece. She holds BSc and Phd from
the Statistics and Operations Research Department of the School of
Mathematics of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Her research
interests include Applied Statistics, Educational Research, Economics of
Education, Efficiency and Equity Matters and Operations Research.
Konstantinos Stergiou is an Economist, M.Ed. in Economics of Education
and currently Ph.D. candidate in the University of Western Macedonia in
Greece. He is teaching in the UOWM as a specialized research associate
courses of Entrepreneurship and Innovation. He has accomplished several
trainings in the field of Social Economy and Social Entrepreneurship. He
also runs his own companies one on the educational sector and the other on
services related to entertainment.
