Influence of Experiential Learning on the Entrepreneurial Intentions of Management Students: Evidence from Correlation, Cross-Tabulation, and Multiple Regression Analysis

Abstract

Experiential learning is one of the main educational techniques used in management education due to its ability to transform classroom exposure into readiness and capability which precedes the establishment of businesses. This research assesses the effect of experiential learning on the entrepreneurial intentions of management students and investigates the relationship between demographic attributes and both variables. Experiential learning was measured through four dimensions, namely, perceived opportunities, preparedness, exposure to entrepreneurship, and entrepreneurial skills using survey data collected among 465 MBA students and tested against entrepreneurial intentions. For analysis, Pearson correlation, chi-square tests of independence, and multiple linear regression were used. Four dimensions of experiential learning showed a positive significant relationship with entrepreneurial intentions (ranging from 0.499 to 0.577, p < 0.01). The regression analysis revealed that all the four dimensions were statistically significant in the model explaining 42.5% of the variation in the entrepreneurial intentions (R = 0.652; R² = 0.425; F(4, 460) = 85.115, p < 0.001), while entrepreneurial skills (β = 0.288) and preparedness (β = 0.231) were the most influential.
The chi-square tests showed significant relationships between entrepreneurial intentions and gender, parents’ occupation, and dual-income status as well as between experiential learning and gender, parents’ occupation, and nativity. The results support the idea that experiential learning is an important antecedent to entrepreneurial intention and both are influenced by demographic context. The research provides useful recommendations for designing courses of entrepreneurship education.