The Longitudinal Effects of Entrepreneurship Training on Risk Tolerance: A Look at Similarities and Differences between Male and Female Undergraduate Students

Abstract

Small businesses are a major engine of growth for the U.S. economy, and universities have responded with a variety of programs designed to nurture potential entrepreneurs. What is still unclear is the real effect these programs have on instilling entrepreneurial values and dispositions in the typical student. In a small pilot study, we track a group of students, struggling over the course of one full year to complete an entrepreneurial exercise. Results suggest that there is little overall change in entrepreneurial attitudes toward risk but the experience may have a more positive impact on women and a more negative impact on men.