THE ROLE OF EDUCATION, INDIVIDUAL AND ECONOMIC FACTORS IN ENTREPRENEURIAL INITIATIVES: A MICROECONOMIC APPROACH FOR THE CZECH REPUBLIC, SLOVAKIA AND POLAND

Considering the role of entrepreneurial initiatives in supporting national economies, the main purpose of this paper is the assessment of various factors’ impact on entrepreneurial initiatives in the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia. Using the data collected via surveys of students in Economics and Business, the association between entrepreneurial initiatives (deep interest in business, intention to start a business after graduation) and quality of higher education, individual traits and economic factors is investigated. The results based on Kendall’s coefficients, Kruskall-Wallis test and multinomial logistic regression indicated that all the students present a certain aversion to risk due to a high number of business disadvantages. Less time left to be spent with family due to business activities and the irregularity of incomes discourage the Poles and the Slovaks to start a business. Unlike Polish students, the Czechs and the Slovaks consider that the quality of higher education motivate them to have entrepreneurial initiatives. Polish and Slovak students decision to start a business depends on the media information about business environment, while for Czech students the knowledge acquired during the studies about starting a business are enough determine them to have own affairs. Some recommendations could be made based on these results: Polish and Slovak higher education in Economics and Business fields needs improvement as to determine the graduates to start and do business of their own. In this context, the organization of more traineeship during the studies to explain them how to be a successful businessperson could have a positive impact on the decision to become entrepreneur. Professors could inform their students that media information is not always the most reliable source, while the experience of successful businessmen shared with students and some lectures taught by experts coming directly from the business environment could be more useful for them.