Side Hustles and the Psychological Drivers of Intention to Start a Small Business

Side hustles have become an important means of empowering individuals, particularly potential entrepreneurs such as students. This research explores the interaction among the perceived benefits of side hustles, entrepreneurial identity, perceived autonomy, and the intention to start a small business among students. A total of 286 responses were collected from different universities in Saudi Arabia. The collected data were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) and revealed interesting findings. The results confirmed that the perceived benefits of side hustles have a positive and significant relationship with both entrepreneurial identity and perceived autonomy. However, there was no direct relationship between the perceived benefits of side hustles and the intention to start a small business. The results also confirmed that entrepreneurial identity and perceived autonomy mediate the relationship between the perceived benefits of side hustles and the intention to start a small business. Unlike previous studies focusing on actual side-hustle participation or general entrepreneurial intentions, this study examines the perceived benefits of side hustles and reveals that their association with students’ intention to start a small business operates entirely through entrepreneurial identity and perceived autonomy. This research offers meaningful insights, suggestions, and practical implications for policymakers and stakeholders in the context of the study.