INVESTIGATING GENERATION Y STUDENTS’ ENTREPRENEURIAL AUTONOMY: A COMPARISON OF GENDER AND RACE

There is consensus among researchers of entrepreneurship that autonomy is an important component of entrepreneurial orientation. Autonomy affords entrepreneurs the free will and flexibility to develop and perform entrepreneurial initiatives. South Africa is experiencing comparatively lower entrepreneurial activity among young people compared to countries at similar levels of development. This study was conducted to investigate the perceptions of entrepreneurial autonomy among Generation Y university students. A questionnaire was administered among Generation Y university students at two universities in the Vaal Triangle area of the Gauteng province, South Africa. A t-test was used to compare perceptions of entrepreneurial autonomy between male and female students. ANOVA was used to compare the perceptions of entrepreneurial autonomy among students from different races. Significant differences were found in three of the six items of autonomy between males and females. No significant differences were found among Black and White students. However, it was encouraging to note that students perceived themselves as possessing autonomy traits. Therefore, it is recommended that Generation Y students should be supported in terms of entrepreneurial ambitions as future entrepreneurs will emerge from this cohort.

Keywords:

Autonomy, generation Y, gender race,

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