Transformations  in
Business & Economics

To be or not to be... an Entrepreneur? The Analysis of Polish Students’ Entrepreneurial Predispositions
Anna Pawlowska, Agnieszka Kacprzak, Adam Strzelecki

ABSTRACT. The predominant group among unemployed Poles are young people under the age of 30, often with a higher education. Few possibilities of being employed as hired labour do not limit their chances for self-employment, which seems to be one of the most important ways to resolve the problem of unemployment in Poland and other European countries.

Entrepreneurship depends on various conditions. Among them we can find those that are connected with the psychosocial qualities of the candidates to be entrepreneurs. The significance of these characteristics is often underestimated because more importance is attached to knowledge, skills and, above all, possessed financial capital. The paper presents the results of research conducted among students of one of the biggest business schools in Poland. The choice of the survey’s participants is motivated by the fact that this group, due to the chosen education path, is the most predisposed to become self-employed.

The purpose of the study was to investigate their psychosocial predispositions to succeed. The research findings indicate that a significant majority of the students intend to establish their own firm in the future. Paradoxically, they exhibit a whole range of characteristics which might become barriers to achieve this goal. Moreover, they are often not aware of this fact. Therefore, an education process aimed to promote entrepreneurship among young people should also shape their attitudes, value system and view of economic reality. This would increase the possibility that entrepreneurial activity will be successfully undertaken in the future.

KEYWORDS: entrepreneurship, psychosocial predispositions, economic reality, students, Poland.

JEL classification: E24, J6, L26, P2.