Shaping digital entrepreneurship intention among engineering students: the roles of digital literacy, smartphone usage and entrepreneurial leadership

Purpose This study aims to examine the factors influencing digital entrepreneurship intention among higher education engineering students in West Sumatra and East Java. Drawing on the theory of planned behavior, this study investigates the effects of digital literacy and entrepreneurial leadership on digital entrepreneurship intention through smartphone usage and digital entrepreneurship attitude. It also examines the moderating role of entrepreneurship family background. Design/methodology/approach This study used a quantitative cross-sectional survey design. Data were collected from higher education engineering students in West Sumatra and East Java who had taken entrepreneurship courses. A total of 1,200 questionnaires were distributed, and 1,035 responses were obtained. The respondents were selected using convenience sampling. Each construct was measured using seven items on a five-point Likert scale. The data were analyzed using SmartPLS 4 with partial least squares structural equation modeling. Findings The results show that digital literacy and entrepreneurial leadership positively influence smartphone usage and digital entrepreneurship attitude. Smartphone usage positively affects both digital entrepreneurship attitude and digital entrepreneurship intention. Digital entrepreneurship attitude was found to be the strongest direct predictor of digital entrepreneurship intention. The findings also confirm the mediating roles of smartphone usage and digital entrepreneurship attitude. Furthermore, entrepreneurship family background strengthens the relationship between smartphone usage and digital entrepreneurship intention but weakens the relationship between digital entrepreneurship attitude and digital entrepreneurship intention. Originality/value This study contributes to the digital entrepreneurship literature by offering empirical evidence from engineering students in a higher education context. It highlights smartphone usage as a behavioral mechanism and digital entrepreneurship attitude as a psychological mechanism linking digital literacy and entrepreneurial leadership to digital entrepreneurship intention.