Scott Lang ANU Example Research Proposal

Research Proposal Go your own way – Which variables encourage entrepreneurial ambitions for tertiary education students in Australia? October 2015 A Mixed Methods Exploration This is a research proposal project undertaken in the subject DEMO8082 Social Research Methods. It is NOT an actual research proposal. Research Proposal Go your own way – Which variables encourage entrepreneurial ambitions for tertiary education students in Australia? A Mixed Methods Exploration Summary Differing expectations between what students think the Australian labour market requires, and what it actually requires may help to explain why graduate employment outcomes are currently at their worst for many years while employers simultaneously complain of skill shortages. Government policy at several level is ostensibly aimed at encouraging small business, but the policies and their outcomes appear to be somewhat disconnected. Research on entrepreneurial intentions has indicated that a lack of direct business experience and familiarity as one of the potential reasons for this gap between theory and practical outcomes. This research project will improve understanding of how university students perceive entrepreneurship, and which factors are impacting upon student attitudes towards entrepreneurship in general terms. Personnel Chief Investigator: Mr Scott Lang Current Department: The Australian Demographic and Social Research Institute, Australian National University Qualifications: Bachelor of Business – Swinburne University, Melbourne Relevant Experience: 3 years' worth of work undertaking survey development, collation and analysis at the Australian Electoral Commission. Prior to that, 3 years of desktop research into pricing patterns at the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Background In recent years, employment in many industries has shifted from a full-time permanent basis to being performed on a project basis, or by outsourcing the work to small businesses. It is far from obvious that students are being advised by the Australian tertiary education sector of the opportunities for self-employment, or the fact that this shift requires potential employees to develop entrepreneurial-style attributes, and to proactively upgrade their personal skills over time. Rationale Uncovering the attitudes of both domestic and international students may also help to explain any difference in employment outcomes between these groups, as well as between international students from different cultures, and between both genders. This study aims to examine the question of student attitudes to entrepreneurship in the Australian context, and from the perspective of international students Brief literature review The existing literature around entrepreneurship broadly defined is diverse. Author of Research Paper Year of Publication Theory or model Referred to by Ajzen 1985 Theory of planned behaviour Franco (2010) Ajzen 1991 Model of perceived behavioural control Ajzen (1991) Bandura 1977 Theory of social learning Franco (2010) Bandura 1987 Concept of self-efficacy Bandura (1987) Thibault and Kelly 1959 Psychological exchange theory Shaver and Scott (1991) Davidsson (1995) Davidsson 1995 Conviction model Franco (2010) Schwartz 1994 Cultural value dimensions Inglehardt 1997 Post modernisation theory Linan and Fernandez-Serrano (2014) Hofstede 2001 Concept of cultural dimensions Jiang and Wang (2014) Shapero and Sokol 1982 Entrepreneurial event theory Franco (2010) Covin and Slevin 1989 Scale of entrepreneurial orientation Taatila and Down (2012) Torres 2005 Concept of different entrepreneurial spirits Boisson et al (2010) Rotter 1966 Locus of control Ajzen (1991) Glaser and Strauss 1967 discovery-oriented inquiry model Bird (1988) Stoner 1961 Choice dilemmas questionnaire Shaver and Scott (1991) Much of the literature mentions the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) (Ajzen, 1985) Ajzen, I, 1991, ‘The theory of planned behaviour’, Organizational behaviour and human decision processes, vol. 50 no. 2, pp 181., in which intentions are assumed to capture the motivational factors that influence behaviour; such as how much effort someone will put into perform it. Boissin et al (2009) found Boisson, JP, Branchet, B, Emin, S,  Herbert, J.I , 2009, ' Students and entrepreneurship: a comparative study of France and the United States', Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship, vol.22, no. 2, pp. 108. the theory of planned behaviour appears to be relevant, described as having appeared to explain over 50% of total variance in both countries. While social norms were not found to be significant, attitudes towards entrepreneurship were by far the most important factor for entrepreneurial motivation, with the results showing that student intention to start up a company was stronger in the US than in France. A large, multi-national study was undertaken by Engle et al (2008) to test the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) found that: “The results suggest that Ajzen’s model of planned behaviour, as operationalized in this study, does successfully predict entrepreneurial intent in each of the study countries, although as foreseen by Ajzen, the significant contributing model elements differ by country as does the percent of the variance explained by the model, although one model element, social norms, was a significant predictor of entrepreneurial intent in each country. Engle et al, 2008, ‘Entrepreneurial intent: A twelve-country evaluation of Ajzen's model of planned behaviour’, International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, vol 16, no. 1, pp. 35.” Shaver and Scott (1991) suggested that children with entrepreneurial parents have more than a role model; they have information unavailable to children with non-entrepreneurial parents Shaver, KG and Scott, LR, 1991, ‘Person, process, choice: The psychology of new venture creation’, Entrepreneurship theory and practice, vol. 16, no.2, pp. 33-34. The importance of role models appears to extend beyond gender-related issues. Davidsson (1995) proposes that, in line with earlier findings, it is not only the presence of role models but what they communicate is very important Davidsson, P, 1995, ‘Determinants of entrepreneurial intentions’, working paper prepared for the RENT IX Workshop, Piacenza, Italy, Nov. 23-24, 1995, pp. 14.. In his research, there are also strong correlations between entrepreneurship and both perceived know-how and vicarious experience (namely, small firm work experience and model perception Davidsson, P, 1995, ‘Determinants of entrepreneurial intentions’, working paper prepared for the RENT IX Workshop, Piacenza, Italy, Nov. 23-24, 1995, Table 6, pp. 19.). However, while the sample for this paper was large, it only included 35-40 years old subjects – and these were business owners, not students. Jiang & Wang (2014) examined cultural and gender differences in entrepreneurial attitudes for China and South Korea. Mention is made of Hofstede's concept of cultural dimensions (2001) Jiang, Z and Wang, Z, 2014, ‘Entrepreneurial Intention and Outcome Expectancy: Evidence from South Korea and China’, Contemporary Management Research, vol.10, no.3, pp 254., especially the idea of uncertainty avoidance. Low uncertainty avoidance cultures tend to take risks and to identify opportunities (China), with the opposite point of view true of high uncertainty avoidance cultures (South Korea) Jiang, Z and Wang, Z, 2014, ‘Entrepreneurial Intention and Outcome Expectancy: Evidence from South Korea and China’, Contemporary Management Research, vol.10, no.3, pp 255.. However, while the sample itself for this survey was reasonable, there are issues with this paper. Not only were there just two universities sampled, but it also appears that the co-authors were not actually present when the studies were being undertaken; as such, how can bias be guarded against? Gupta et al (2009) found that entrepreneurs were perceived to have predominantly masculine characteristics. Additional results were that although both men and women perceive entrepreneurs to have characteristics similar to those of males (masculine gender role stereotype), only women also perceived entrepreneurs and females as having similar characteristics (feminine gender-role stereotype) Gupta, VK, Turban DB, Wasti, SA, Sikdar, A, 2009, ‘The role of gender stereotypes in perceptions of entrepreneurs and intentions to become an entrepreneur’, Entrepreneurship theory and practice, vol. 33, no. 2, pp.397. The results were consistent across the three countries. However, the unbalanced design of the samples across all three countries in regards to gender, age and work experience throws doubt upon these findings. A survey taken by students at three different universities in Finland (Taatila, 2013) found statistically significant differences in entrepreneurial orientation when measured for gender, age, prior work experience (except for government) and academic program Taatila, V, 2013, ‘The entrepreneurial orientation between groups of students’, Interdisciplinary Studies Journal, Vol 2, No. 4, Laurea University of Applied Sciences, pp. 66. This paper also found a difference in entrepreneurial orientation, but it was argued that the difference in these scores may stem from entrepreneurial desire, rather than the sub-variables tested, as the students did not show large differences in innovation, pro-activeness or confrontation tolerance Taatila, V, 2013, ‘The entrepreneurial orientation between groups of students’, Interdisciplinary Studies Journal, vol. 2, no. 4, Laurea University of Applied Sciences, pp. 77. In summary, much of the academic research suggests that exposure to entrepreneurship during education could have a real impact upon entrepreneurial beliefs and intentions (Boisson et al, 2009 Boisson, JP, Branchet, B, Emin, S, Herbert, JI, 2009, ‘Students and entrepreneurship: a comparative study of France and the United States’, Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship, vol.22, no.2, pp.115, Taatila and Down, 2012 Taatila, V, Down, S, 2012, ‘Measuring entrepreneurial orientation of university students’, Education and Training, vol.54, no.8/9, pps. 745 and 755.). In particular, Engle et al, 2010 Engle et al, 2008, ‘Entrepreneurial intent: A twelve-country evaluation of Ajzen's model of planned behaviour’, International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, vol 16, no. 1, pp. 51 refer to a study by Fayolle (2004) which suggests that business school training might be geared towards corporate managerial careers rather than entrepreneurial ones. Specific Aims and Research questions The research participants will be sampled from several tertiary institutions in Canberra. There are two stages to the research, and they have related but separate aims. The aim of the first stage is to determine which factors have an impact upon the attitudes of domestic and international students in regards to entrepreneurship, for the Stage 1 survey, both domestic and international students will be invited to participate. The aim of the second stage is to better understand any factors or barriers may impact upon the attitudes and behaviour of international students, in regards to entrepreneurship. STAGE ONE – On-line Survey The following research questions will inform the survey questions; Do students in Australian tertiary institutions have entrepreneurial ambitions? What do students in Australian tertiary institutions plan to do upon graduation? Are there differences in attitudes towards entrepreneurship between domestic and international students? The survey will include questions in relation to intention, autonomy, feasibility, subjective norms, networking, risk-taking, innovation, and tolerance for ambiguity, and future career intentions. Basic demographic questions (e.g. nationality, study discipline, gender) will be asked at the end of the survey to reduce respondent burden and maximise data capture. The final question in the survey will ask if they would like to participate in follow-up research. If they click “Yes”, they will be asked to enter their email address, and there will be a paragraph explaining that this is simply for the researcher to make initial contact with them; it will not be kept or passed onto any other organisations to the extent allowed by law. To ensure that the research has construct validity, a test survey will be undertaken by domestic and international associates of the researcher. STAGE TWO – Face to face interviews The researchers will make contact using the email addresses provided by the participants in Stage 1. This group will be screened to ensure they have the requisite maturity to participate, and sufficient English to allow a complete understanding of the interview questions. Participants will be given a document to sign prior to the interviews to record informed consent. Two research questions will guide Stage 2 of the survey: Are there differences in attitudes towards entrepreneurship between international students from different backgrounds? Which factors act to support or inhibit entrepreneurial ambitions for international students in Australia? The semi-structured interviews will have some common pre-formed questions, but will also allow for spontaneous questions if an interesting topic arises. The questions below will be tested for relevance with a panel before participants are met. Although there is flexibility in the order and form of the questions, the interview will cover: The reasons why the participants chose to study their course of study What they think broadly about entrepreneurship If they have had experience of a family member or other close relative owning a business, and the participant’s feelings about it. If they have had direct experience of running a business personally, and the participant’s feelings about it. If they think of Australia as being an entrepreneurial place If they are interested in being an entrepreneur, and if so, what excites/concerns them about it If they are not interested in being an entrepreneur, and if so, why do they feel this way? Are there any specific concerns they may have about it? Topic (a) will be used as a ‘warm up’ and will allow the researcher to gain an understanding of the participant’s situation. The topic about Australia will be used as a “breather” from the more personally focused questions. Proposed methodology and approach In this study, international student will mean anyone studying at tertiary level (both undergraduate and postgraduate level) who holds an appropriate visa, but does not live permanently in Australia. This excludes permanent residents and those who are here on student exchange for a shorter period than 2 years. Only students over the age of 18 will be included in the research. Participants will be advised that they are free to leave the research at any time, and that confidentiality can only be protected up to the extent defined by law. This research will take 2 years to complete, using a mixed methods approach to improve its validity and reliability. Limitations of the research One of the limitations of the project relate to its geographic focus. Canberra is only one city, and not a large one. It is also not clear if the domestic student body is representative of the Australian population, nor whether the international students in the research accurately reflect the international student population across Australia. Because this is exploratory research, the findings can only be considered as potentially indicative, not predictive or generalizable. Recruitment There is a proposed range of 800-1000 survey participants in Stage 1, and ideally 40-60 participants in Stage 2 for face-to-face interviews. The larger the sample size, the less likely it will be possible to isolate any responses that identify any particular individual or group of people. If the number of participants in the survey stage did not go above 300, a variation to the study would be required from the ANU Ethics Committee to allow the study to simply include the first stage of the project. The researcher will initially seek to meet with representatives of student associations and campus clubs (especially those related to international students) to establish the bona fides of the project. Part of this approach will include introducing a suggested script for these clubs to use on the emails out to their members, and a suggested reminder script. If that approach does not provide sufficient take-up, academic staff in the various tertiary institutions will be approached, starting with those in the social science and business-related faculties. An email invitation, which will include a hyperlink to the on-line survey, will be used in both the approaches outlined above. In the event that not enough participants complete the survey, a reminder email will be sent to the remaining students who have not responded (this is possible because all student emails will have a code number in the survey software). After the reminder, a snowball sample approach will be attempted. Likewise, if the second stage of the project did not reach a minimum of 40 students, a request for variation from the ANU Ethics Committee would look at focusing the interviews upon only students from one nationality, or a similar common attribute. As a last resort, if the strategies above do not work, an alternative approach will be taken to provide a small amount of monetary compensation for participants, estimated at $10 per survey in Stage 1, and $20 per interview in Stage 2. Timelines The proposed sequence and timing of research activities is at Appendix A. Budget/Resources The Project is expected to cost $48,733 in Year One, and $73,692 in Year Two, for a total project cost estimate of $122,425. Please refer to Appendix B for more detail. Justification of Funding Requested Personnel A Chief Investigator is required to work full time for the period of this research project and will be responsible for all tasks, including recruitment, coordination of each phase and overall project management. Equipment A licence for the survey software package Checkbox will be purchased for this project and used to collate and export the data coding and analysis of quantitative data from Stage 1 of the project. Having this program will assist greatly in data management and the identification of key themes in the interview transcripts (which will subsequently direct research findings). It should be noted that this software is preferred because the data is kept on the server being used by the client, not an overseas server, as some other commercial survey software does. This allows greater data protection and privacy. The quoted price from the provider’s website has been recorded in the budget. The 1800 phone line will allow potential participants to ask questions about either stage of the project. It will also be used by the Chief Investigator to make contact with the various stakeholders in the project, helping the research to proceed in line with the expected timeframes. The 1800 number is also intended to ensure the privacy and safety of the Chief Investigator during both stages of the project, by removing the need for sharing of personal information. The Digital audio recorder (Sony PCM-D50), its associated memory cards, and the digital pen are necessary to assist the Chief Investigator to ensure that what is said in the Stage 2 face-to-face interviews is captured accurately. Likewise, professional transcribing of the data aims to give both the participants and future users of the research confidence in the validity of the information. Research Outcomes The research findings may point to a need for the introduction of entrepreneurial thinking into courses which do not currently include it, in order to give students in all disciplines a better idea of the broad skill sets required in the labour market. A more comprehensive effort by universities to encourage entrepreneurial activities as an extra-curricular activity, together with providing work experience and internship opportunities, could also be potential solutions. The findings will be used to inform the skilled immigration and entrepreneurial policy debate. They may also be of interest to universities, employer groups, and the Canberra start-up community, and it is hoped that the research findings will inform more detailed, larger scale research in future. Communication of Results The findings from both stages will then be analysed to determine any policy or research directions can be suggested, and it is intended to present the findings to academic staff and students at the Australian National University on the completion of the project. The findings may also be published at a later date in an academic journal. References/Bibliography Ajzen, I. 1991. The theory of planned behaviour, Organizational behaviour and human decision processes, 50(2), 179-211. Engel Robert L., Dimitriadi Nikolay, Gavidia Jose V, Schlaegel Christopher, Delanoe Servane, Alvarado Irene, He Xiaohong, Buame Samuel, Wolff Birgitta. 2010. Entrepreneurial intent: A twelve-country evaluation of Ajzen's model of planned behaviour, International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, 16(1), 35-57. Franco Mario, Haase Heiko, Lautenschlager Arndt, 2010, Students' entrepreneurial intentions: an inter-regional comparison, Education+ Training, 52(4), 260-275. Gupta, Vishal K., Turban Daniel B, Wasti S Arzu, Sikdar Arijit. 2009. The role of gender stereotypes in perceptions of entrepreneurs and intentions to become an entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship theory and practice, 33(2), 3917-417. Jiang, Zhou and Wang, Zhongmin. 2014. Entrepreneurial Intention and Outcome Expectancy: Evidence from South Korea and China, Contemporary Management Research, 10(3), 251-270. Liñán, Francisco and Fernandez-Serrano, José. 2014. National culture, entrepreneurship and economic development: different patterns across the European Union, Small Business Economics, 42(4), 685-701. Matlay, Harry., Taatila Vesa, Down Samuel. 2012. Measuring entrepreneurial orientation of university students, Education+ Training, 54(8/9), 744-760. Maysami, Ramin Cooper and Ziemnowicz, Christopher. 2007. Ethnicity, Gender and Entrepreneurial Tendencies: The Singapore Perspective, The Copenhagen Journal of Asian Studies. (25), 74-98. Mazzarol, Tim., Volery Thierry, Doss Noelle, Thein Vicki. 1999. Factors influencing small business start-up: A comparison with previous research, International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, 5(2), 48-63. Shaver, Kelly G and Scott, Linda R. 1991. Person, process, choice: The psychology of new venture creation, Entrepreneurship theory and practice, 16(2), 23-45. Taatila, Vesa. 2013. The entrepreneurial orientation between groups of students. Interdisciplinary Studies Journal, 2(4), 66-82. Winkel, Doan., Vanevenhoven Jeff, James Mark, Liguori Eric. 2013. Student Entrepreneurial Intentions: Two Perspectives, European Conference on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Academic Conferences International Limited, 2, 649-660  APPENDIX A – Project Time Frame and Stages Task Provision of survey instrument to student clubs Agreement with student clubs for survey to be sent out Reminder letters sent from student clubs for survey (if required) Provision of survey instrument to academic schools (if required) Agreement with academic schools for survey to be sent out Initial analysis of Stage 1 results to inform Stage 2 Reminder letters sent from academics for survey (if required) Face-to-face interviews with Stage 2 participants Snowball sampling to begin (if required) Final reminder sent through snowball sampling emails Final analysis of Stage 1 results to inform Stage 2 Provision of final Stage 1 data file Final analysis of Stage 2 interview data Methodology report and research findings Start 25-10-15 14-11-15 07-01-16 21-01-16 22-02-16 15-04-16 22-04-16 16-05-16 15-06-15 15-07-16 15-08-16 25-02-17 25-04-17 25-07-17 End 14-11-15 01-12-15 07-02-16 21-02-16 15-03-16 15-05-16 22-05-16 25-03-17 15-07-15 22-07-16 25-02-17 25-04-17 25-07-17 25-10-17 Oct-15                             Nov-15                             Dec-15                             Jan-16                             Feb-16                             Mar-16                             Apr-16                             May-16                             Jun-16                             Jul-16                             Aug-16                             Sep-16                             Oct-16                             Nov-16                             Dec-16                             Jan-17                             Feb-17                             Mar-17                             Apr-17                             May-17                             Jun-17                             Jul-17                             Aug-17                             Sep-17                             Oct-17                              APPENDIX B: Literature Review Should open as an Excel document, was far too large to include as a Word table. Please note this was removed to reduce the document size. esearch Proposal DEMO 8082 Scott Lang u5213893 Go your own way – Which variables encourage entrepreneurial ambitions for tertiary education students in Australia? 13