How digital literacy and digital entrepreneurship education shape digital entrepreneurial intention among agriculture students

Digital entrepreneurship has become an important driver of innovation and economic development, yet the mechanisms linking digital competencies and educational experiences to digital entrepreneurial intention (DEI) remain insufficiently understood in agricultural higher education. Extending the Theory of Planned Behavior, this study examines how digital literacy and digital entrepreneurship education relate to DEI through attitudes and perceived behavioral control. Data were collected from 300 agriculture students at two Iranian public universities and analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The results show that digital literacy was not directly associated with DEI but was positively associated with digital entrepreneurship education. Digital entrepreneurship education, in turn, showed positive direct and indirect associations with DEI through attitudes and perceived behavioral control. Subjective norms were not significantly associated with DEI. These findings suggest that students’ digital entrepreneurial intentions may be shaped more strongly by perceived desirability and feasibility than by perceived social pressure. The study extends the TPB by positioning digital literacy and digital entrepreneurship education as antecedents of DEI and highlighting attitudes and perceived behavioral control as key proximal mechanisms. For agricultural higher education, the findings underscore the value of integrating foundational digital skills with entrepreneurship education to support students’ digital entrepreneurial development.