UNLOCKING THE ENTREPRENEURIAL PROPENSITY AMONG PRIME-AGE MALAYSIANS: A MULTI-ETHNIC ANALYSIS
Keywords:
entrepreneurial propensity, attitude, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, multi-ethnic analysis, survey, MalaysiaAbstract
Malaysia is blessed with diverse ethnic groups that work hand in hand to spur the country's economy via numerous entrepreneurial initiatives. Historically, the economic background of the three racial groups namely Malay, Chinese, and Indian were segregated based on sector and location, thus creating a huge economic cleavage. Noting the need to bridge this gap, various policies were put in place to enhance the socio-economic well being of each group as a way to develop a united nation among the multi-ethnic groups. The present study attempts to obtain insight into the differences in ethnicity towards entrepreneurial propensity and thus offer a closer scrutiny on the changes in entrepreneurship trend with the passage of time as well as the effectiveness of the interventions implemented. Specifically, this study focuses on testing the possible differences pertaining to the attitude towards entrepreneurship, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, and entrepreneurial propensity among the three ethnicities. A total of 180 Malaysian youth participated in this study and it was revealed that the prime-age cohort from the three ethnic groups share some commonalities in terms of their attitude towards entrepreneurship, subjective norms, perceived control behaviour, as well as entrepreneurial propensity. This is seen a promising scenario given that it in a multi-ethnic society such as Malaysia, the huge economic cleavage may dampen the effort to promote harmony, peace and unity in the country.
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