Effect of virtual social networks on entrepreneurial behaviour of agriculture students in Iran

ABSTRACT

The main purpose of this research was to investigate those factors influencing the entrepreneurial behaviour of agriculture students who were members of entrepreneurship learning and training groups in virtual ‎communication networks. In doing this, a conceptual model was developed to examine the effects of characteristics of entrepreneurship virtual social networks and the degree of participation in these networks through entrepreneurial thinking and decision on entrepreneurial behaviour. The study population of ‎this descriptive-correlational research was made up of 180 members of virtual social groups exchanging knowledge of entrepreneurship in ‎WhatsApp and Viber networks. A total of 126 usable questionnaires were collected. Results indicated that participation in virtual social networks ‎had both direct and indirect effects – through ‎entrepreneurial thinking and decisions – on entrepreneurial behaviour. ‎However, characteristics of ‎‎entrepreneurship ‎virtual networks had only indirect effect on entrepreneurial ‎behaviour ‎via entrepreneurial thinking. The study highlights certain implications for policymakers, (potential) entrepreneurs, entrepreneurship support organizations, researchers and underlines the potential of virtual social networking for promoting entrepreneurship.

KEYWORDS:

• Entrepreneurship
• entrepreneurial behavior
• entrepreneurial thinking
• virtual social networks
• agriculture students

JEL CLASSIFICATION:

• M13
• A20

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.