Entrepreneurship is an important driver of societal health, wealth, as well as a formidable engine of economic growth (Mehta, Lalwani, Momaya, & Jain, 2014). A dynamic phenomenon emerges from entrepreneurial activities which plays an important role in shaping the economy through the generation of new jobs and is frequently associated with a nation's economic development (Hu, Wang, Zhang, & Bin, 2018; Pandit, Joshi, & Tiwari, 2018). Prior researchers illuminated the importance of entrepreneurial intention models as a framework for action in recent years and discussed the individual factors which influenced entrepreneurial intentions for promoting the evolution of entrepreneurial growth (Kariv, Cisneros, & Ibanescu, 2019; Varghese, 2019). Looking into previous studies, researchers have acknowledged that entrepreneurial intention is the appropriate behavior to physically start a new business (Markman, Balkin, & Baron, 2002; Zampetakis & Moustakis, 2006; Zisser, Johnson, Freeman, & Staudenmaier, 2019). Recent literature indicates that creativity and entrepreneurial passion is the strongest predictor for identifying the influence of entrepreneurial intention (Biraglia & Kadile, 2017; Kumar & Shukla, 2019). There are many factors, particularly creativity, entrepreneurial passion, and self-efficacy, which affect the intention to join a new venture. Therefore, the goal and action of entrepreneurship becomes quite a complicated mechanism rather than a clear one (Hu et al., 2018).
A research on university students regarded as a dominant part of any academic system and is imperative to developing a nation’s competitiveness in the global knowledge economy. Education institutes of Pakistan seem to be moving very slow. They should develop an effective learning environment in students to make innovative business competitive ideas (Momaya, Bhat, & Lalwani, 2017). According to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor Report (GEM), from 2012 to 2020 entrepreneurial behavior towards new business and self-perception related to entrepreneurship intention grew from 24.51–27.90% in Pakistan, alongside a fear of failure which rise from 31.24–54.16% due to interaction between higher education institutes of Pakistan and entrepreneurial potential (Soomro & Honglin, 2018). Moreover, the report explains that in Asia and the Pacific Region, among the countries of China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, and Armenia, Pakistan scored the highest 46.48–62.30% rate of perceived opportunities for entrepreneurship among youngsters to start a new business.
Creativity refers to effective innovation that is fundamentally linked to something new and creative (Hu et al., 2018). Entrepreneurial passion relates to a strong emotion to fulfill any mission synonymous with the concept of self-identity (Karimi, 2020). Existing studies argue that entrepreneurial passion is the foundation of entrepreneurship and an important catalyst for both entrepreneurship and taking entrepreneurial action (Biraglia & Kadile, 2017; Campos, 2016; Cardon, 2008; Cardon & Kirk, 2015; Murnieks, Mosakowski, & Cardon, 2014).
The objective of this article is to highlight the importance of creativity and entrepreneurial passion for entrepreneurial intention. Many new businesses have failed in Pakistan due to a lack of entrepreneurial passion, a lack of creativity, and a lack of innovative ideas (Javed, 2019). This study tried to investigate the entrepreneurial intention model through creativity with the mediating role of entrepreneurial passion. This study highlights firstly, the research which examines the relationship between creativity and entrepreneurial intention in the context of Western culture (Biraglia & Kadile, 2017). From the perspective of Pakistan’s entrepreneurial culture, the relationship between creativity and entrepreneurial passion for entrepreneurial intention is underexplored. Most of the previous studies examined the direct influence of creativity and entrepreneurial passion on entrepreneurial intention (Campos, 2017; Hu et al., 2018; Khedhaouria, Gurău, & Torrès, 2015) and the mediating role of entrepreneurial passion is not testified by previous researchers. Secondly, prior studies suggest that future researchers can use entrepreneurial passion and creativity as a predictor to measure entrepreneurial intention in different studied settings (Hu et al., 2018; Kumar & Shukla, 2019). Therefore, to fulfill this research gap, this study highlights the importance of creativity and entrepreneurial passion for entrepreneurial intention in the Pakistani context to contribute to the field of entrepreneurship.
Theory and Hypothesis Development
The theory of planned behavior was introduced by Ajzen. This theory elaborates that entrepreneurial behavior is required to start a new business with the help of an entrepreneurial attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control (Ajzen, 1991). This theory tries to predict the entrepreneurial intention of actual entrepreneurial behavior. Moreover, creativity and entrepreneurial passion is the essential driving force in the new business development process and the fire of desire which energizes the routine efforts of entrepreneurs. Prior researchers argue that creativity has a positive impact on entrepreneurial passion and entrepreneurial intention (Campos, 2016; Rodrigues, Jorge, Pires, & António, 2019). Thus, it is believed that individuals with a high level of creative ideas and entrepreneurial passion are more likely to become an entrepreneur.
Creativity and Entrepreneurial Intention
Creativity is generally associated with creative and innovative ideas for starting a new business. Prior studies explain that creativity is positively and significantly associated with entrepreneurial intention (Biraglia & Kadile, 2017; Hu et al., 2018; Rodrigues et al., 2019). Creativity refers to the capacity, ability, and skill that people hold. It also refers to the creation of new and useful ideas. Researchers argue that creative persons are usually entrepreneurs and creativity is deemed to be the highest characteristic of entrepreneurship (Eid, Badewi, Selim, & El-Gohary, 2019; Martin & Widjaja, 2019).
Hu et al. (2018) conducted a cross-sectional study to measure student's entrepreneurial intentions with proactive personality and creativity, and results were found to be positive and significant. Moreover, the extant literature confirms that creativity strengthened motivation among students and built entrepreneurial intentions to become entrepreneurs (Ndofirepi, Rambe, & Dzansi, 2018). Entrepreneurs might raise creativity in their employees or workers and provide them an appropriate workplace where they can freely create novel ideas. Creativity is considered to be a powerful predictor in the field of entrepreneurship and helps individuals to acquire employment (Hu et al., 2018). Creativity linked to a motivation for self-employment encourages individuals who are more likely to become entrepreneurs. Therefore, creativity will be appropriate for considering entrepreneurship as an employment choice and the key component to begin the entrepreneurial process which contributes to the design of new products. Thus, individuals who have a high level of creativity are more likely to start their businesses (Kumar & Shukla, 2019; Zampetakis, Gotsi, Andriopoulos, & Moustakis, 2011). Therefore, we predicted the following hypothesis:
H1. Creativity will have a positive influence on entrepreneurial intention.
Creativity and Entrepreneurial Passion
Prior literature explains that creativity had a positive impact on entrepreneurial intention, entrepreneurial passion, and business performance (Davis, Hmieleski, Webb, & Coombs, 2017). A recent study argues that entrepreneurial passion enhances the individual level of probability for developing creative ideas (Li et al., 2020). Individuals with a high level of enthusiasm or passion are more inclined to become entrepreneurs. Anjum et al. (2018) found a positive and significant relationship between creativity and entrepreneurial passion. Moreover, scholars indicate that a higher level of entrepreneurial passion in a person is more creative in his or her performance to accomplish a task. Biraglia and Kadile (2017) highlight the role of creativity and entrepreneurial passion among home-brewers and found a significant impact on entrepreneurial intention. Ip, Wu, Liu, and Liang (2018) executed a study on students with a sample of 331 students using online and offline surveys and found a positive association between creativity and entrepreneurial intention.
Zampetakis et al. (2011) reported the results of 181 undergraduate students from two Greek technical universities and suggested that creativity is a positive and significant predictor for investigating an entrepreneurial intention among students. Furthermore, Zampetakis and Moustakis (2006) have confirmed the positive and significant impact of creativity on entrepreneurial intention using a sample of 180 undergraduate business school students and found a positive influence of creativity as well as its mediatory role in the association between family support and entrepreneurial intention. Campos (2017) conducted an empirical study using a sample of 112 technology-based entrepreneurs and found that entrepreneurial passion was positively and significantly influenced by entrepreneurial orientation. Thus, based on the above discussion, we conclude that creativity positively leads to entrepreneurial passion through translating innovative ideas into reality. Hence, we hypothesized:
H2. Creativity will have a positive influence on entrepreneurial passion.
Entrepreneurial Passion and Entrepreneurial Intention
Researchers have widely studied that entrepreneurial passion has played a significant role in entrepreneurial intention (Karimi, 2020; Mueller, Wolfe, & Syed, 2017). According to Vallerand et al. (2003) passion refers to a strong feeling for performing any task which people would like to achieve through being fully driven and dedicating their time. Campos (2017) argues that passion is an influential need to accomplish definite activities. Researchers have distinguished three types of entrepreneurial passion. Firstly, a passion for inventing reflects the passion of the entrepreneur for identifying, inventing, exploring, and exploiting new opportunities. Secondly, a passion for founding reflects the entrepreneur’s passion for behavioral activities related to the establishment of a new business for marketing and identifying opportunities. Thirdly, a passion for developing a business reflects a passion involving the care, development, and expansion of the new business after its establishment (Cardon, 2008; Cardon, Gregoire, Stevens, & Patel, 2013; Cardon & Kirk, 2015; Cardon, Wincent, Singh, & Drnovsek, 2009).
Several studies explain that entrepreneurial passion is associated with developing motivational factors when the environment is uncertain and resources are narrow (Biraglia & Kadile, 2017; Chen, Yao, & Kotha, 2009). Furthermore, entrepreneurial passion is considered as one of the personal factors which fall under social and cognitive theory (SCT) and help to overcome the definite barriers which are related to new business formation. Entrepreneurial passion is likely to organize the desirable energy of entrepreneurs to overcome challenging conditions by dealing with uncertainties. A recent study by Karimi (2020) argues that entrepreneurial passion motivates people to know innovative opportunities and develop a new business intention. Thus, we proposed the following hypothesis:
H3. Entrepreneurial passion will have a positive influence on entrepreneurial intention
The mediating role of entrepreneurial passion
As discussed by prior studies, entrepreneurial passion has a positive influence on creativity and entrepreneurial intention (Cardon et al., 2013; Syed, Butler, Smith, & Cao, 2020). Cardon et al. (2009) defines passion as a strong feeling and inclination toward an activity that people like to achieve with full energy. Passion is considered as the heart of entrepreneurship and it can become an important indicator of creativity (Hu et al., 2018) and entrepreneurial intention (Campos, 2017). Moreover, scholars argue that entrepreneurial passion develops a positive feeling and attitude among individuals and enhances their motivational factors when the environmental situation is uncertain and resources are limited (Biraglia & Kadile, 2017). According to Cardon (2008), passion can be theorized as a motivational hybrid force that connects an individual's positive action and intense behavioral tendency to engage in sustained manner and recognize a specified activity. There are a large number of definitions elaborated upon by prior researchers (Cardon & Kirk, 2015; Murnieks et al., 2014) which mention that there is no actual definition of entrepreneurial passion which is defined by previous researchers which focused on a particular passion-activity.
The research on the relationship between entrepreneurial passion and creativity has not been explored sufficiently by previous researchers. Thorgren and Wincent (2015) explain that entrepreneurial passion enables entrepreneurial behavioral activities through opportunity recognition, exploitation, and execution. Liu, Chen, and Yao (2011) have argued that passion positively mediates in the relationship between organizational autonomy support and individual autonomy orientation on employee work creativity in the organization. Campos (2017) shows that entrepreneurial passion positively mediate in the relationship between entrepreneurial alertness and entrepreneurial orientation. Lavigne, Forest, and Crevier-Braud (2012) indicate that harmonious passion is positively associated with the creative achievement of individuals. Furthermore, (Cardon & Kirk, 2015; Obschonka, Moeller, & Goethner, 2019) recommend that passion is an action which is specifically taken for inventing or solving the creative problem in such a way that individuals follow innovative and creative ways of action. Looking into the extant literature, passion has a significant impact on the inventing and creativity of behavioral activities. Thus, following the above discussion, it appears that individuals with a higher level of passion are more likely to invent something positively which contributes to creativity and entrepreneurial intention. Therefore, we predicted:
H4. Entrepreneurial passion positively mediates the relationship between creativity and entrepreneurial intention
Conceptual Model