Effects of competence-based sustainable entrepreneurship education on secondary school students’ sustainable entrepreneurial intention

Sustainable entrepreneurship is crucial for promoting economic growth while addressing environmental and social challenges to advance sustainable development. Sustainable entrepreneurs are driven by their intention to solve these sustainability challenges through entrepreneurial means. In higher education, sustainable entrepreneurship education is recognized as a driver of sustainable entrepreneurial intention and related antecedents, such as the attitude toward sustainable entrepreneurship.Based on the theory of planned behavior, this study aims to examine the impact of competence-based sustainable entrepreneurship education on secondary students’ sustainable entrepreneurial intention and its antecedents. Additionally, the effect of the commonly studied background factors ‘gender’ and ‘exposure to sustainable entrepreneurial role models’ is explored. A controlled pre-post research design was employed between April and May 2023 to assess changes in dependent variables. Data were collected via a questionnaire from 169 students participating in sustainable entrepreneurship interventions in Southern Germany.The findings indicate that sustainable entrepreneurship education has a significant positive effect on secondary school students’ sustainable entrepreneurial intention, attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control. The effect of the intervention on sustainable entrepreneurial intention, attitude, and perceived behavioral control is consistent across participants’ genders. Sustainable entrepreneurial role models did not significantly influence the measured constructs.These results support the implementation of sustainable entrepreneurship education already into secondary school curricula, demonstrating its potential to enhance students' sustainable entrepreneurial intention and related antecedents. This study contributes to the theoretical understanding of sustainable entrepreneurial intention formation and offers insights for educators and policymakers aiming to foster sustainable entrepreneurial intention among youth.