From Intention to Action: The Role of Entrepreneurial Education and Opportunity Recognition in Tourism Students’ Business Aspirations

Abstract

Drawing upon the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), this study explores the main antecedents of entrepreneurial intention and the desire to start a new business among Tourism students during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research is based on data collected from 152 finalist students from Portuguese higher education institutions (HEIs) using a self-report questionnaire. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was employed to assess the measurement and structural model. The results reveal that fear and anxiety related to COVID-19 do not significantly influence either entrepreneurial intention (βs = -0.100; p = 0.133) or the desire to start a new business (βs = 0.066; p = 0.177). Conversely, opportunity recognition (βs = 0.471; p < 0.001) and perceived entrepreneurial education (βs = 0.284; p < 0.05) positively influence entrepreneurial intention. Furthermore, entrepreneurial intention (βs = 0.446; p < 0.001) and anticipatory emotions (βs = 0.204; p < 0.05) significantly enhance the desire to start a new business. Surprisingly, TPB antecedents – attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioural control – do not show statistically significant effects on this outcome. The findings also indicate that entrepreneurial intention fully mediates the relationships between opportunity recognition (βs = 0.210; p < 0.01) and perceived entrepreneurial education (βs = 0.127; p < 0.05) with the desire to start a new business. This study extends entrepreneurship research in crisis contexts by highlighting the central role of entrepreneurial intention as a mediating mechanism and by evidencing the limited explanatory power of traditional TPB antecedents in shaping students’ entrepreneurial behavior during periods of uncertainty. The findings also suggest the coexistence of distinct crisis-response logics – “acting” vs. “wait-and-see” – influencing entrepreneurial outcomes.