Career adaptability and entrepreneurial intentions: the role of future time perspective and promotion focus behavior

Abstract

The complex nature of the entrepreneurial environment warrants that studies go beyond main effect to examining boundary conditions in such relationships. Studies on the link between career adaptability and entrepreneurial intentions exist, yet important questions, including the extent to which motivational variables (future time perspective and promotion focus behaviour) might moderate the relationship remains untested. This study draws on the self-regulatory and socio-emotional selectivity theories, arguing that the relation between career adaptability and entrepreneurial intentions would be contingent on future time perspective and promotion focus behaviour. The SP SS and AMOS statistical softwares facilitated the data analysis. The path analysis results among students in a Ghanaian Public University (N = 397) showed that career adaptability, future time perspective, and promotion focus behavior relates positively to entrepreneurial intentions. Further, it was revealed that career adaptability was beneficial for entrepreneurial intentions for students who scored low on future time perspective and high on promotion focus. The implications of this study are in threefold: for undergraduate students, for counsellors interested in developing student entrepreneurs and for pedagogical development and improvement, particularly those teaching of entrepreneurship in Ghanaian universities.