Social Cognitive Theory, Entrepreneurial Self-Efficacy and Entrepreneurial Intentions: Tools to Maximize the Effectiveness of Formal Entrepreneurship Education and Address the Decline in Entrepreneurial Activity

The purpose of this paper is to examine existing literature on Social Cognitive Theory, entrepreneurial self-efficacy, and entrepreneurial competencies and intentions, to understand the current state of the field, design a new theoretical framework to help determine the best teaching strategies and identify career counselor competencies and possible contributions to the entrepreneurial education field. Entrepreneurial self-efficacy is proposed as a useful construct to increase the entrepreneurial intentions and competencies of students.  Social cognitive theory, self-efficacy, and entrepreneurial self-efficacy are incorporated into an applied theoretical framework to improve the effectiveness of formal entrepreneurship education. Specifically, the model links the four sources of self-efficacy with entrepreneurial self-efficacy and entrepreneurial intentions; which lead to effective entrepreneurial education program outcomes.