Abstract

As pointed out by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), fostering entrepreneurial spirit is fundamental to the development of market economies. The failure of an entrepreneur involves a cost to society in terms of lost opportunities and resources, and is detrimental to the individual, both economically and psychologically. Entrepreneurial behavior and attitudes of individuals are determined by different variables, some of them related to the cognitive and personality characteristics of the person, and others focused on contextual aspects. The aim of this seminar is to present the state of the art of enterprising personality assessment in youth, and propose a new measurement instrument for the assessment of eight enterprising personality dimensions: Achievement Motivation, Risk-taking, Innovativeness, Autonomy, Locus of Control, Self-Efficacy, Optimism, and Stress Tolerance. A sample of 2,693 students (51% males) from different regions in northern Spain was used. Mean age was 16.52 years (SD=1.38), with an age range of 16 to 23. The psychometric properties of the instrument are presented as well as validity evidence of the construct measured, paying special attention to general personality traits (Big Five) and Emotional Intelligence.