The influence of family entrepreneurs on students’ entrepreneurial potential

Abstract

Until recently, the family was a motivational model for the entrepreneurial potential of their descendants. In today’s post-European economic crisis, its role is unknown. This article aims to analyze to what extent the presence of entrepreneurs in the family influences the entrepreneurial potential and motivations of their descendants.
A sample of 966 Portuguese Higher Education students answered the Entrepreneurial Motivations survey, which showed adequate psychometric properties.
The presence of entrepreneurs in the family had a positive influence on the motivations of family and societal achievement, despite a lack of effect on the motivations of resources and income, as well as prestige and personal learning/development.
Having entrepreneurs in the family positively influenced the Judging-Perceiving and Thinking Feeling factors of the Carland Entrepreneurship Index. However, path analysis revealed there was no direct effect of the presence of entrepreneurs in the family on the entrepreneurial potential and on the motivations for family and societal achievement of the students, although there was a significant indirect effect, with the desire for self-employment and the ability to start a business as mediators. Having entrepreneurs in the family have also shown a direct effect on these mediators, as well as having/implementing business ideas.