Enhancing students’ well-being and entrepreneurship outcomes: the role of study resources and psychological capital

Purpose Building on the job demands-resources theory, this study aims to investigate the relationships between study resources, personal resources, students’ well-being and entrepreneurship outcomes. Design/methodology/approach Longitudinal data were collected across three time points. A total of 154 Dutch students completed a questionnaire at the start, middle and the end of an entrepreneurship program. Findings The results of structural equation modeling demonstrated that study resources, specifically teacher–student relationships and student–student relationships, positively related to study engagement, which, in turn, fostered students’ entrepreneurial intentions. Moreover, student–student relationships related stronger to enhanced study engagement for students with high personal resources (psychological capital). Regarding the negative side of well-being, we found that student–student relationships significantly reduced study exhaustion, and study exhaustion negatively related to students’ entrepreneurship competence. Results confirmed the importance of study resources and personal resources in fostering students’ well-being and entrepreneurship outcomes. Originality/value Higher educational institutions globally have expanded the number of entrepreneurship programs. Despite this growth, little attention has been paid to the role study and personal resources, especially students’ psychological capital, play in shaping students’ well-being and educational outcomes within entrepreneurship programs. The findings contribute to continually improving the teaching effectiveness of entrepreneurship programs.