South Africa is currently experiencing high levels of unemployment, and
entrepreneurship is regarded as a tool that can help solve the problem.
Entrepreneurial intent is regarded as the best predictor of actual entrepreneurial
behaviour. On the other hand, perseverance is believed to influence a person’s
course of action and is considered to be one of the motivating factors that are
necessary for entrepreneurship, as it acts as an inner drive towards a given
goal (Harris, Gibson, & Mick, 2009). In this regard, we question if there is a
relationship between entrepreneurial intent and perseverance.
Data was collected using two self-rating questionnaires called the Individual
Entrepreneurial Intent Scale (IEIS) developed by Thompson (2009) to measure
entrepreneurial intentions and the Short Grit Scale (Grit-S) which was
developed by Duckworth and Quinn (2009) to measure perseverance.
The study found no significant relationship to exist between perseverance
(measured using grit) and entrepreneurial intent. Regardless of a low level of
perseverance, a person with high levels of entrepreneurial intent may still start a
business. According to the person-entrepreneurship fit model, this person is
more likely to fail (Markman & Robert, 2003). Furthermore, the study found
final-year university students to have a low level of entrepreneurial intent and
perseverance. The findings suggest that students prefer to be employed and
thus will put more effort into finding a job than starting their own business
ventures. They are unlikely to cope with the challenges associated with
entrepreneurship.
Recommendations were made to educators and organisations aimed at
developing entrepreneurs. These recommendations suggested were to improve
current entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial training courses by introducing
programmes aimed at improving the learners’ levels of perseverance within the
entrepreneurship courses. A recommendation was also made to introduce
entrepreneurship courses to students from all fields of study, with the main aim
of creating awareness and participation.