Start-up intentions of potential entrepreneurs – the contribution of hope to success

In line with Ajzen’s theory of planned behaviour (1991), an individual’s behaviour is a product of intentions based on attitude toward behaviour, subjective norms, and perceived control. It seems important to seek factors that underlie business intentions and that go beyond Ajzen’s theory when adapting the model to business-related behaviour. This study aims to determine the predictive value of Snyder’s hope of success for start-up intentions. The study was conducted at the University of Finance and Management in Warsaw (Poland) with 347 students of various majors using the Start-up Intentions Questionnaire (SuIQ), the Hope Scale (HS), and the Multidimensional Personal and Business Data Sheet. Potential entrepreneurs displayed stronger start-up intentions than people who did not plan to start a business. Positive correlations were found between start-up intentions and the scores in the HS subscales. The scores in Pathways were the only variables in the regression model that were significant predictors of start-up intentions. The other independent variables – the score for Agency, the total HS score, age, and sex – did not achieve the required significance level. Deepening one’s convictions, especially about one’s skills and persistence in solving problems, may be considered one of the factors underlying start-up intentions.