Predictors of entrepreneurial intention in nurses and nursing students based on the theory of planned behavior
- 1Student Research Committee, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
- 2Department of Community Health Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
- 3Student Research Committee, Faculty of Allied Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
Background: Entrepreneurship in nursing is rapidly expanding as an innovative approach in health care systems and can effectively help improve the quality of services, increase efficiency, reduce costs, and improve access to health care. This approach allows nurses to identify and create new opportunities in the field of health care provision, education, research, and management by utilizing their creativity, knowledge, and skills. In the current situation where health systems are facing challenges such as human resource shortages, financial pressures, and the need to optimize resources, nursing entrepreneurship can help solve these issues as a key strategy.
Objective: This study aims to analyze factors such as attitude, self-efficacy, and subjective norms to examine the effects of these variables on entrepreneurial intention among Iranian nurses and nursing students.
Methods: This correlational predictive study explored the relationship between self-efficacy as an exogenous variable and individual attitudes, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control as mediating variables, and the entrepreneurial intention of nurses as an endogenous variable, within a path analysis model. The study was conducted on 339 eligible participants. Stratified random sampling was utilized, where initially, a list of nursing students in a practicum stage, active nurses, head nurses, and supervisors was compiled from selected educational-treatment centers under the jurisdiction of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences. The sample size for each stratum was then determined based on the proportion of the total population, and sampling within the strata was performed using simple random sampling. This study’s instruments included demographic data sheets, alongside questionnaires on entrepreneurial intention, individual attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and entrepreneurial self-efficacy. Data collected were analyzed statistically using SPSS version 20 and AMOS version 24, employing descriptive statistics such as frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, and ultimately path analysis.
Results: Perceived behavioral control, attitude, and entrepreneurial self-efficacy had a direct effect on entrepreneurial intention, while subjective norm had an indirect effect. The findings also indicated that all three variables of the Theory of Planned Behavior could be considered as mediating variables.
Conclusion: The present study found a significant relationship between entrepreneurial intention and the variables of the theory of planned behavior. Perceived behavioral control had significant direct and indirect effects on entrepreneurial intention of nurses and nursing students. Also, entrepreneurial self-efficacy has an impact on entrepreneurial intention. Based on these results, educational institutions should integrate practical entrepreneurship courses into nursing curricula and policymakers should promote innovation and socio-cultural changes through financial support and campaigns. Future research should pay attention to the role of cultural and institutional factors in the formation of entrepreneurial intention and barriers to entrepreneurship in healthcare systems.
Related
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BibTeX
@article{aghighi2026predictors,
title = {{Predictors of entrepreneurial intention in nurses and nursing students based on the theory of planned behavior}},
author = {Ali Aghighi and Shabnam Shariatpanahi and Fereshteh Javaheri Tehrani and Nikoo Navidi Ghaziani},
journal = {BMC Nursing},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1186/s12912-026-05196-5},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-026-05196-5},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Predictors of entrepreneurial intention in nurses and nursing students based on the theory of planned behavior
AU - Ali Aghighi
AU - Shabnam Shariatpanahi
AU - Fereshteh Javaheri Tehrani
AU - Nikoo Navidi Ghaziani
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/07
JO - BMC Nursing
DO - 10.1186/s12912-026-05196-5
UR - https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-026-05196-5
AB - Background: Entrepreneurship in nursing is rapidly expanding as an innovative approach in health care systems and can effectively help improve the quality of services, increase efficiency, reduce costs, and improve access to health care. This approach allows nurses to identify and create new opportunities in the field of health care provision, education, research, and management by utilizing their creativity, knowledge, and skills. In the current situation where health systems are facing challenges such as human resource shortages, financial pressures, and the need to optimize resources, nursing entrepreneurship can help solve these issues as a key strategy. Objective: This study aims to analyze factors such as attitude, self-efficacy, and subjective norms to examine the effects of these variables on entrepreneurial intention among Iranian nurses and nursing students. Methods: This correlational predictive study explored the relationship between self-efficacy as an exogenous variable and individual attitudes, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control as mediating variables, and the entrepreneurial intention of nurses as an endogenous variable, within a path analysis model. The study was conducted on 339 eligible participants. Stratified random sampling was utilized, where initially, a list of nursing students in a practicum stage, active nurses, head nurses, and supervisors was compiled from selected educational-treatment centers under the jurisdiction of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences. The sample size for each stratum was then determined based on the proportion of the total population, and sampling within the strata was performed using simple random sampling. This study’s instruments included demographic data sheets, alongside questionnaires on entrepreneurial intention, individual attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and entrepreneurial self-efficacy. Data collected were analyzed statistically using SPSS version 20 and AMOS version 24, employing descriptive statistics such as frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, and ultimately path analysis. Results: Perceived behavioral control, attitude, and entrepreneurial self-efficacy had a direct effect on entrepreneurial intention, while subjective norm had an indirect effect. The findings also indicated that all three variables of the Theory of Planned Behavior could be considered as mediating variables. Conclusion: The present study found a significant relationship between entrepreneurial intention and the variables of the theory of planned behavior. Perceived behavioral control had significant direct and indirect effects on entrepreneurial intention of nurses and nursing students. Also, entrepreneurial self-efficacy has an impact on entrepreneurial intention. Based on these results, educational institutions should integrate practical entrepreneurship courses into nursing curricula and policymakers should promote innovation and socio-cultural changes through financial support and campaigns. Future research should pay attention to the role of cultural and institutional factors in the formation of entrepreneurial intention and barriers to entrepreneurship in healthcare systems.
SN - 1472-6955
ER -