Psychological Capital and Entrepreneurial Intention—The Mediation Role of Internet Entrepreneurial Self-Efficacy

Beatrice Adriana Balgiu (), Petruța Mihai and Teodora Daniela Chicioreanu
Additional contact information
Beatrice Adriana Balgiu: Department of Career and Educational Training, National University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest, 060042 Bucharest, Romania
Petruța Mihai: Department of Entrepreneurship and Management, National University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest, 060042 Bucharest, Romania
Teodora Daniela Chicioreanu: Department of Career and Educational Training, National University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest, 060042 Bucharest, Romania

Administrative Sciences, 2025, vol. 15, issue 12, 1-17

Abstract: Based on Social Cognitive Theory and Positive Psychology, this study addresses a research gap by examining internet entrepreneurial self-efficacy as a mediating mechanism between psychological capital and internet entrepreneurial intention in the digital context—a relationship rarely explored among engineering students in Eastern European economies. Using a quantitative, cross-sectional design, data were collected from 900 undergraduates enrolled in three Romanian technical universities who completed a set of specific instruments. Entrepreneurial intention was measured with the Individual Entrepreneurial Intent Scale adapted for online entrepreneurship; entrepreneurial self-efficacy in the online context was assessed using the Internet Entrepreneurial Self-Efficacy Scale; and psychological capital was measured with the Psychological Capital Questionnaire adapted for the student environment. The mediation analysis conducted through PROCESS-macro showed that psychological capital exerts a significant indirect effect on internet entrepreneurial intention via internet entrepreneurial self-efficacy. Psychological capital exerted a strong effect on internet entrepreneurial self-efficacy (β = 0.538), which in turn influenced the intention to start an online business (β = 0.213), while the direct effect on internet entrepreneurial intention remained relatively reduced (β = 0.037). The results indicate that positive psychological resources foster entrepreneurial intention by strengthening confidence specific to the digital environment. This study advances Social Cognitive Theory by demonstrating that internet entrepreneurial self-efficacy operates as the proximal cognitive pathway through which psychological capital is translated into entrepreneurial intention in online settings, clarifying how general psychological resources acquire domain-specific relevance in digital entrepreneurship.

Keywords: internet entrepreneurship; internet entrepreneurial self-efficacy; psychological capital; entrepreneurial intention (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: L M M0 M1 M10 M11 M12 M14 M15 M16 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3387/15/12/464/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3387/15/12/464/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jadmsc:v:15:y:2025:i:12:p:464-:d:1803225

Access Statistics for this article

Administrative Sciences is currently edited by Ms. Nancy Ma

More articles in Administrative Sciences from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().