Measurement of university students' entrepreneurship intention : the role of the theory of planned behavior and entrepreneurship education

Nowadays, entrepreneurship has been one of the key factors which plays role in economic development thanks to high improvement of technology and easy access to information. Entreprenuership has been crucial economic power to provide social and personal welfare and to increase life standarts of individuals. The importance given to entrepreneurship is also increasing the interest which felt on entrepreneurship education. Entreprenurship education is one of the key factors to understand young people and to increase their entreprenuerial attitudes. Potential entrepreneurs should be supported and developed with education, because of education's effect to aims and thoughts of young people (Wang & Wong, 2004). In light of this informantion, personal attitude, social norm, perceived behavior control which is becoming the Theory of Planned Behavior's items was also examined (analyzed) whether or influence of entreprenuership education to university students' entrepreneurial intentions. In accordance with this purpose, Osmaniye Korkut Ata University and Kahraman Maraş Sütçü İmam University was researched on the third and fourth class business administration students' who get entrepreneurship education. According to the findings of this research, it was found that percevied behavior control had the strongest positive effect on university students' entrepreneurial intentions. It has been reached to results of the fact that personal attitude and entrepreneurship education have positive and significant effects on university students' entrepreneurial intentions but social norm has not statistically significant effect on university students' entrepreneurial intentions. Keywords: Entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship intention, theory of planned behavior, entrepreneurship education.