Validating a theory of planned behavior questionnaire to measure entrepreneurial intentions

Abstract

The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB, Ajzen, 1991) has been widely employed to predict

entrepreneurial intentions. The TPB offers a coherent and generally applicable theoretical

framework, which enables us to understand and predict entrepreneurial intentions by taking

into account not only personal but also social factors (Krueger et al., 2000). This study

presents the validation of an Entrepreneurial Intention Questionnaire (EIQ) in a sample of

more than three thousand Spanish university graduates. The EIQ comprises four subscales:

attitudes towards entrepreneurship, subjective norms, self-efficacy, and entrepreneurial

intention. Unlike other questionnaires used in the field (Autio, Keeley, Klofsten, Parker &

Hay, 2001; Krueger, Reilly & Carsrud, 2000; Liñán & Chen, 2009), EIQ follows Ajzen’s

(Ajzen, 2002) methodological recommendations on how to construct a TPB questionnaire

using composite measures of attitudes and subjective norms. Structural equation modeling

(SEM) confirmed that the EIQ has a high reliability and predictive validity for Spanish

university graduates’ entrepreneurial intentions.