Exploring factors motivating entrepreneurial intentions 1 © 2019 Brian Towers (BRITOW) and John Wiley & Sons Ltd. International Journal of Training and Development 0:0 ISSN 1360-3736 doi: 10.1111/ijtd.12158 Exploring factors motivating entrepreneurial intentions: the case of Italian university students Luca Ferri, Gianluca Ginesti, Rosanna Spano and Annamaria Zampella This study aims to identify the factors motivating the inten- tions of university students to become entrepreneurs. Leveraging data from a survey of 941 Italian students and adopting Ajzen’s theory of planned behaviour, this paper employs the structural equation model to identify factors explaining students’ entre- preneurial intentions. The findings show that attitudes, subjec- tive norms and perceived behavioural control positively shape Italian students’ intentions. Moreover, the findings signal that the skills acquired during the university pathway play a cru- cial role in encouraging students to consider entrepreneurial choices. The paper extends and complements the academic and policy debate in the field of entrepreneurship offering a compre- hensive investigation of the factors affecting entrepreneurial intentions. It also allows us to contend that higher education may have an important role to play in fostering the entrepre- neurial intentions of young people. This is especially signifi- cant given current global economic conditions and the renewed importance of self-employment strategies. ‘Higher levels of education are positively correlated with both greater la- bour market participation and lower unemployment.’ —Mario Draghi, President of European Central Bank Trinity College, Dublin (Ireland), 22 September 2017 ❒ Luca Ferri, Gianluca Ginesti, Rosanna Spano and Annamaria Zampella, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy. Email: luca.ferri@unina.it. gianluca.ginesti@unina.it. rosanna.spano@unina.it. annamaria.zampella@unina.it. ❒ Authors are listed in alphabetical order (with all authors having contributed equally)