TECHNOPRENEURIAL INTENTION IN MALAYSIAN HIGHER EDUCATION: A CONCEPTUAL REVIEW OF INDIVIDUAL BELIEFS, COMPETENCY READINESS AND UNIVERSITY ENTREPRENEURIAL ECOSYSTEM
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35631/IJEMP.935065Keywords:
Belief, Competency, Higher Educational Institution, Technopreneurial Intention, Theory of Planned Behaviour, University SupportAbstract
Technopreneurship has become increasingly important in higher education as universities are expected to produce graduates who are not only employable but also capable of creating technology-driven ventures. In Malaysia, this agenda is closely aligned with national aspirations to strengthen graduate entrepreneurship, digital transformation and innovation-led economic development. Despite the expansion of entrepreneurship education and institutional initiatives within higher education institutions, the translation of entrepreneurial exposure into genuine technopreneurial intention remains a continuing concern. Existing studies on entrepreneurial intention have widely applied the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), yet findings remain inconsistent, particularly when entrepreneurship is situated within technology-intensive and digital economy contexts. This conceptual paper reviews the literature on entrepreneurial intention, technopreneurial competency readiness and university entrepreneurial support in Malaysian higher education. It argues that technopreneurial intention should not be understood only through individual attitudes or general entrepreneurial beliefs, but also through students’ perceived readiness to engage with technology-based opportunities and the extent to which university ecosystems enable entrepreneurial development. Based on the reviewed literature, the paper proposes a conceptual framework that positions individual beliefs, technopreneurial competency readiness and university entrepreneurial ecosystem as interrelated domains shaping students’ technopreneurial intention. The paper contributes to the literature by extending the Theory of Planned Behaviour through technopreneurial competency readiness as a contextualised form of perceived behavioural control, by reconceptualising university support as a multidimensional entrepreneurial ecosystem rather than a single institutional variable, and by proposing an integrated conceptual framework, with directional propositions, that jointly links these domains to technopreneurial intention in the Malaysian higher education context.
Downloads
References
Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179–211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-5978(91)90020-T
Ajzen, I. (2002). Perceived behavioral control, self-efficacy, locus of control, and the theory of planned behavior. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 32(4), 665–683. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1559-1816.2002.tb00236.x
Duan, L. (2022). An extended model of the theory of planned behavior: An empirical study of entrepreneurial intention and entrepreneurial behavior in college students. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, Article 627818. 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.627818
Government of Malaysia. (2021). Malaysia Digital Economy Blueprint. Economic Planning Unit, Prime Minister’s Department. https://www.ekonomi.gov.my/sites/default/files/2021-02/malaysia-digital-economy-blueprint.pdf
Koe, W. L., Rahim, M. R. A., & Mahphoth, M. H. (2023). Determinants of technopreneurial intention among university students: Individual entrepreneurial orientation as mediator. Marketing and Management of Innovations, 14(2), 185–195. https://doi.org/10.21272/mmi.2023.2-17
Krueger, N. F., Jr., Reilly, M. D., & Carsrud, A. L. (2000). Competing models of entrepreneurial intentions. Journal of Business Venturing, 15(5–6), 411–432. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0883-9026(98)00033-0
La Barbera, F., & Ajzen, I. (2020). Control interactions in the theory of planned behavior: Rethinking the role of subjective norm. Europe’s Journal of Psychology, 16(3), 401–417. https://doi.org/10.5964/ejop.v16i3.2056
Liñán, F., & Chen, Y. W. (2009). Development and cross-cultural application of a specific instrument to measure entrepreneurial intentions. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 33(3), 593–617. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2009.00318.x
Maziriri, E. T., Mabuyana, B., & Nyagadza, B. (2025). Navigating the technopreneurial odyssey: Determining how technopreneurial self-efficacy, technopreneurial education and technological optimism cultivate tech-driven entrepreneurial intentions. Management & Sustainability: An Arab Review. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1108/MSAR-08-2024-0086
Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia. (2021). Entrepreneurship Action Plan for Higher Education Institutions 2021–2025. Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia. https://www.mohe.gov.my/en/download/publications-journals-and-reports/ptk-ipt/2021-2025
Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry. (2023). New Industrial Master Plan 2030. Government of Malaysia. https://www.nimp2030.gov.my
Musa, S. N. S., Seman, A. S. A., & Hamzah, S. R. (2023). Entrepreneurial intention among university students in Malaysia. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 13(12), 2661–2670. https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v13-i12/20130
Mustafa, M. J., Chin, J. W., Nungsari, M., & Morris, K. J. (2023). Do proactive students benefit more from university support for entrepreneurship when it comes to choosing entrepreneurship as a career choice? An examination of Ghanaian and Malaysian students. The International Journal of Management Education, 21(3), Article 100868. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijme.2023.100868
Nayak, P. M., Nayak, M., & Joshi, H. G. (2025). Extending the theory of planned behaviour: Entrepreneurial motivation as a moderator of intention–behaviour link in emerging economies. Industry and Higher Education, 40(3), 352–366. https://doi.org/10.1177/09504222251375615
Putra, R. W., Wardi, Y., Evanita, S., & Sandi, H. H. (2025). A systematic literature review: Entrepreneurship among university students. Ilomata International Journal of Management, 6(4), 1336–1355. https://doi.org/10.61194/ijjm.v6i4.1817
Ratkovic, T., Paunovic, I., & Šlogar, H. (2025). The role of university entrepreneurship support and student diversity in student entrepreneurial intention: A social identity theory perspective. PLOS ONE, 20(4), Article e0321651. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0321651
Tee, P. K., Wong, L. C., Dada, M., Song, B. L., & Ng, C. P. (2024). Demand for digital skills, skill gaps and graduate employability: Evidence from employers in Malaysia. F1000Research, 13, Article 389. https://doi.org/10.12688/f1000research.148514.1
Wiramihardja, K., Al Mamun, A., Munikrishnan, U. T., Yang, Q., Salamah, A. A., & Hayat, N. (2022). Sustainable economic development through entrepreneurship: A study on attitude, opportunity recognition, and entrepreneurial intention among university students in Malaysia. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, Article 866753. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.866753
Xanthopoulou, P., & Sahinidis, A. (2024). Students' entrepreneurial intention and its influencing factors: A systematic literature review. Administrative Sciences, 14(5), Article 98. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci14050098
Ye, L., Zhang, T., Zhang, Q., & Mi, Z. (2025). University support for student entrepreneurship in China: Developing entrepreneurial capacity and intentions. SAGE Open, 15(2). https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440251337840
