Investigating the Impact of Marketing Knowledge on Students' Intention to Start a Business: The Mediating Role of Entrepreneurial Identity and Entrepreneurial Self-Efficacy

In today’s world, entrepreneurship is recognized as one of the key factors driving economic and social development. Among various societal groups, students—as a dynamic and creative segment—can play a prominent role in fostering entrepreneurial growth. Given the importance of marketing knowledge in business success, examining its impact on students’ intention to start a business is essential. Furthermore, entrepreneurial identity and entrepreneurial self-efficacy, as socio-psychological variables, may play significant mediating roles in this relationship. Therefore, the main objective of the present study is to investigate the impact of marketing knowledge on students’ intention to start a business, with a focus on the mediating roles of entrepreneurial identity and entrepreneurial self-efficacy.This research is an applied study in terms of purpose and falls under the category of descriptive-correlational studies in terms of data collection methodology. It uses structural equation modeling to analyze the relationships among the research variables. The statistical population consists of all undergraduate and graduate students at Hazrat-e-Masoumeh University (Qom) during the academic year 2023–2024. Simple random sampling was employed to select the sample. Considering that the study is inferential and based on structural equation modeling, a total of 300 questionnaires were distributed among students, out of which 280 fully completed questionnaires were collected and used for analysis. Data were collected using standardized questionnaires, and the data analysis was performed using the SmartPLS software. The results revealed that marketing knowledge has a positive and significant effect on students’ intention to start a business. Moreover, marketing knowledge significantly influences both entrepreneurial identity and entrepreneurial self-efficacy. Entrepreneurial identity and entrepreneurial self-efficacy also have separate significant impacts on students’ intention to start a business. Finally, the findings confirmed that both entrepreneurial identity and entrepreneurial self-efficacy play significant mediating roles in the relationship between marketing knowledge and entrepreneurial intention.