Appointing the Level of Individual Entrepreneurship of Islamic Azad

Entrepreneurship is initially about seeking opportunities and then seeking the needed resources. An organization which is poor in entrepreneurial activities is often poor in supplying the organization with opportunities. Those organizations seeking progress must understand what helps opportunities manifest. This research aims to appoint the level of individual entrepreneurship of students studying Cultural Management at the Science & Research Branch of the I.A.U to help understand the significance of the main factors of individual entrepreneurship which are risk-taking, requiring success, having an internal control center, creativity tendency, needing independence, tolerating uncertainty, prognostication and being a good conversationalist. The research is functional, goal wise, and a questionnaire has been used as a data collecting tool. The results from the research questions showed that the level of individual entrepreneurship of students studying Cultural Management at the Science & Research Branch of the Islamic Azad University was estimated to be good, but still far from the desired level. Some of the most important findings of this research are as it follows: there is a reverse relation between the factors of risk-taking, needing independence & tolerating uncertainty and gender; there is a reverse relation between the factors of risk-taking & requiring success and age which means that the older the students become, the more reduction of the factors; there is a direct relation between factors of having an internal control center, tolerating uncertainty & being a good conversationalist and age; and no meaningful relation is seen between creativity tendency and age.


Introduction
As the unemployment rate continues to rise and is forecasted to increase by the end of the year, many workers are finding it harder and harder to have a sustainable job.A slowing economy forces many large corporations to cut down on and restrict resources, and unfortunately it looks like the situation will only get worse before it gets better (Unemployment Forecasts for 2008).The increasingly harrowing state of our economy is forcing people to seek out new ways of making money, whether it is online or in the real world.
According to Audretsch (2003), for analyzing the determinants of entrepreneurship, one of the most important units of observation is the individual level.In the entrepreneurship literature, the prevalent framework has been the general model of income choice (Knight 1921;Lucas 1978;Kihlstrom and Laffont 1979;Holmes and Schmitz 1990;Jovanovic 1994;Blanchflower and Meyer 1994;Blanchflower and Oswald 1998).

Research Significance
It is very important to assess executive's personal characteristics for they directly affect the activities done by other members of an organization.Characteristics such as requiring success, risk-taking, creativity tendency and tolerating uncertainty are known to be entrepreneurship characteristics of all executives.Therefore, the individual characteristics of executives and workers in organizations are closely studied when researching entrepreneurship, psychology wise, and based on non-financial aspects.
More extended researches have been done on entrepreneurship and have been different in approach, but they are still not enough.More researches should be done to help explore study and understand the foresaid characteristics and their relation with each individual's job and position.It is most important to do so in the countries in progress to help them have true entrepreneurship in their organizations.

Definition of Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship is the practice of starting new organizations or revitalizing mature organizations, particularly new businesses generally in response to identified opportunities.Entrepreneurship is often a difficult undertaking, as a vast majority of new businesses fail.Entrepreneurial activities are substantially different depending on the type of organization that is being started.Entrepreneurship ranges in scale from solo projects (even involving the entrepreneur only part-time) to major undertakings creating many job opportunities.Many "high value" entrepreneurial ventures seek venture capital or angel funding in order to raise capital to build the business.Angel investors generally seek returns of 20-30% and more extensive involvement in the business (Angel Investing, Mark Van Osnabrugge and Robert J. Robinson).Many kinds of organizations now exist to support would-be entrepreneurs, including specialized government agencies, business incubators, science parks, and some NGOs.Lately more holisitc conceptualizations of entrepreneurship as a specific mindset (see also entrepreneurial mindset) resulting in entrepreneurial initiatives e.g. in the form of social entrepreneurship, political entrepreneurship, or knowledge entrepreneurship emerged.

Definition of Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is a person who has possession of an enterprise, or venture, and assumes significant accountability for the inherent risks and the outcome.It is an ambitious leader who combines land, labor, and capital to often create and market new goods or services.... (Sullivan, arthur;Steven M. Sheffrin, 2003).The term is a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish economist Richard Cantillon.Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to the type of personality who is willing to take upon herself or himself a new venture or enterprise and accepts full responsibility for the outcome.Jean-Baptiste Say, a french economist, believed to have coined the word Entrepreneur first in about at 1800.He said an entrepreneur is "one who undertakes an enterprise, especially a contractor, acting as intermediatory between capital and labour" (Tim Hindle).
Entrepreneurship is often difficult and tricky, resulting in many new ventures failing.The word entrepreneur is often synonymous with founder.Most commonly, the term entrepreneur applies to someone who creates value by offering a product or service, by carving out a niche in the market that may not exist currently.Entrepreneurs tend to identify a market opportunity and exploit it by organizing their resources effectively to accomplish an outcome that changes existing interactions within a given sector.
Observers see them as being willing to accept a high level of personal, professional or financial risk to pursue opportunity.
Business entrepreneurs are viewed as fundamentally important in the capitalistic society.Some distinguish business entrepreneurs as either "political entrepreneurs" or "market entrepreneurs," while social entrepreneurs' principal objectives include the creation of a social and/or environmental benefit.

Individual Characteristics of Entrepreneurs 1) Individual Values:
A lot of researches have been done on the significance of personal values of entrepreneurs, but they haven't been able to set boundaries between unsuccessful entrepreneurs and other people.There are characteristics which are important for entrepreneurs and are used for other successful people too; such as support, courage, good intentions, flexibility and creativity (Hisrich & Peters, 1998, P. 6).
2) Cultural Values: Researchers have explored the effect of national, regional, and organizational cultures on wealth creation through new venture creation, innovation, and risk taking.3) Family Background & Mentor: If a person is exposed to entrepreneurial heritage and an entrepreneurial atmosphere (be it the person's household, friends or work environment), then there is a high possibility that s/he will acquire and learn the attitude of entrepreneurship.Those who have parents working in non-governmental jobs are the ones who prefer to work for themselves and not for others (Einar, 2005, P. 20).
3) Mentors & Family Background: If a person is exposed to entrepreneurial heritage or an entrepreneurial atmosphere (be it the person's household, friends or work environment), then there is a high possibility that s/he will acquire and learn the attitude of entrepreneurship.Those who have parents working in non-governmental jobs are the ones who prefer to work for themselves and not for others (Einar, 2005, P. 20).

4) Work Experience:
Researchers have proved that there is a direct relation between an entrepreneur's economical activities and the profession that s/he is engaged in and most importantly has had previous experiences in.Having professional experience makes a person realize that they are even better than executives; so, why not work for themselves and earn more?(Johns, 2005, P. 21) 5) Education: There is this question asked by many researchers that "Are people born entrepreneurs or are they made into entrepreneurs through education?"Education is very important in entrepreneurship and new results have proven that (Arancibia, 2008, P. 219).6) Social Context: If a person is exposed to entrepreneurial attitude in his/her society, then there is a high possibility that s/he will acquire and learn the attitude of entrepreneurship.7) Age: Begining entrepreneurial activities early help in making good entrepreneurs.8) Being a Member of a Minority: The racial, ethnical and religious minorities in every society are the better ones in entrepreneurship because they always want to proven that there is something worthwhile in them.Other studies have also shown that entrepreneurs from the minorities are often young and educated as well (Johns, 2005, P. 605).

Research Goals
Ideal Goal: To do a research that could be positively effective in enhancing individual entrepreneurship in Iran.

General Goal:
To study the level of individual entrepreneurship of students studying cultural management.

Specific Goals:
1) Appointing the effect of risk-taking on individual entrepreneurship of university students.
2) Appointing the effect of requiring success on individual entrepreneurship of university students.
3) Appointing the effect of having an internal control center on individual entrepreneurship of university students.
4) Appointing the effect of creativity tendency on individual entrepreneurship of university students.

Research Kind
This research is functional, goal wise and a descriptive (correlational) research, method wise.

Statistical Population & Sampling
The statistical population is the students studying Cultural Management at the Science & Research Branch of the Islamic Azad University.

Data Collecting Tools
An entrepreneurship questionnaire was issued and had two parts which both collected the individual characteristics of each student which have had impact on their individual entrepreneurship.

Questionnaire Admissibility & Stability
The questionnaire was given to a group of 30 students from different study majors and Kronbach's Alpha was calculated to be %84 for individual entrepreneurship.

Research Questions:
1) What is the level of risk-taking in the university students majoring in cultural management?
2) What is the level of requiring success in the university students majoring in cultural management?
3) What is the level of having an internal control center in the university students majoring in cultural management?4) What is the level of creativity tendency in the university students majoring in cultural management? 5) What is the level of needing independence in the university students majoring in cultural management? 6) What is the level of tolerating uncertainty in the university students majoring in cultural management?7) What is the level of prognostication in the university students majoring in cultural management?8) What is the level of being a good conversationalist in the university students majoring in cultural management?

Testing Research Questions
As you can see in table #1, from the 63 people contributing in this research, 35 (%55.6) were males and 28 were females (%44.4).
As you can see in table #2, from the 63 people contributing in this research, 32 people (%50.8) were in the age category of 31-40 years of age and 3 people (%4.8) were in the age category of 51 and plus years of age.
As you can see in table #3, from the 63 people contributing in this research, 45 people (%71.4) had MA degrees of education and 18 people (%44.4) had PhD degrees.

Insert Table 4 Here
Interpretation: According to table # 4, the value of t is (-14.324), the degree of freedom is (62), the level of significance is (0.00) which is lower than the value of T critical and confirms the null hypothesis.Thus, it could be said that the factor of risk-taking in the university students majoring in cultural management is %99 in an acceptable level.

Insert Table 5 Here
Interpretation: According to the Table #5, the value of t is (-13.977), the degree of freedom is (62), the level of significance is (0.00) which is lower than the value of T critical and confirms the null hypothesis.Thus, it could be said that the factor of requiring success in the university students majoring in cultural management is %99 in an acceptable level.

Insert Table 6 Here
Interpretation: According to table #6, the value of t is (-14.091), the degree of freedom is (62), the level of significance is (0.00) which is lower than the value of T critical and confirms the null hypothesis.Thus, it could be said that the factor of having an internal control center in the university students majoring in cultural management is %99 in an acceptable level.7 Here Interpretation: According to table # 7, the value of t is (-8.126), the degree of freedom is (62), the level of significance is (0.00) which is lower than the value of T critical and confirms the null hypothesis.Thus, it could be said that the factor of creativity tendency in the university students majoring in cultural management is %99 in an acceptable level.

Insert Table 8 Here
Interpretation: According to table # 8, the value of t is (-16.337), the degree of freedom is (62), the level of significance is (0.00) which is lower than the value of T critical and confirms the null hypothesis.Thus, it could be said that the factor of needing independence in the university students majoring in cultural management is %99 in an acceptable level.

Insert Table 9 Here
Interpretation: According to table # 9, the value of t is (-16.595), the degree of freedom is ( 62), the level of significance is (0.00) which is lower than the value of T critical and confirms the null hypothesis.Thus, it could be said that the factor of tolerating uncertainty in the university students majoring in cultural management is %99 in an acceptable level.

Insert Table 10 Here
Interpretation: According to table # 10, the value of t is (-7.923), the degree of freedom is ( 62), the level of significance is (0.00) which is lower than the value of T critical and confirms the null hypothesis.Thus, it could be said that the factor of prognostication in the university students majoring in cultural management is %99 in an acceptable level.

Insert Table 11 Here
Interpretation: According to table # 11, the value of t is (-6.344), the degree of freedom is (62), the level of significance is (0.00) which is lower than the value of T critical and confirms the null hypothesis.Thus, it could be said that the factor of being a good conversationalist in the university students majoring in cultural management is %99 in an acceptable level.

Conclusion
The main goal of this research was to study the relation of individual entrepreneurship characteristics of students studying cultural management.To do so, 8 factors were known to be the related characteristics with individual entrepreneurship of students and they were analyzed distinctively and in combination.The findings of this research have shown that the factors of risk-taking, requiring success, having an internal control center, creativity tendency, needing independence, tolerating uncertainty, prognostication and being a good conversationalist of the university students majoring in cultural management were in an acceptable level.

Other important conclusions are as it follows:
1) There is a reverse relation between the factors of risk-taking, needing independence & tolerating uncertainty and gender; i.e., this factor is stronger in men and women are in a lower range.
2) There is a reverse relation between the factors of risk-taking & requiring success and age which means that the older the students become, the more reduction of the factors there will be; i.e., the older you get, the less risks you will take.
3) There is a direct relation between the factors of having an internal control center, tolerating uncertainty & being a good conversationalist and age; i.e., the older you get, the stronger these factors will become.For example, tolerating uncertainty gets much easier as one becomes older.4) There was no meaningful relation seen between creativity tendency and age; i.e., the decrease or increase of age does not impact creativity tendency.5) There is a direct relation between the factors of having an internal control center, needing independence, prognostication, prognostication & being a good conversationalist and level of education; i.e., the higher one's education level, the stronger the factors.6) There was no meaningful relation seen between the factors of risk-taking, requiring success & creativity tendency and level of education; i.e., there is no change in the factors as one's education level becomes higher.7) Among the 8 factors, the factors of being a good conversationalist, prognostication and requiring success (in order) had better levels than the other factors.

Functional Recommendations
Although the overall level of individual entrepreneurship of university students majoring in cultural management was good, but there is still a long way to go in order to get to the desired level; thus, it is essential for universities to find & implement the right practical strategies in order to solve this problem.The researcher believes that entrepreneurship can be implemented in universities if the individual entrepreneurship characteristics of students are nurtured and if entrepreneurial activities are appreciated and encouraged in those with high inspiration for presenting new ideas.To accomplish this goal, the following changes are essential to be made: x Changing executives' outlook on positive organizational changes.
x Specifying financial resources of universities as distinct research budgets to innovation.
x Strengthening the spirit of risk-taking and courage among university students and professors.
x Encouraging universities and members of the scientific board to present creative and innovated ideas by giving them special rewards (such as research rewards or educational ones).
x Adding entrepreneurship characteristics to the annual assessment paper of professors and educational groups.
x Establishing an entrepreneurial staff in the Islamic Azad University.
x For the university executives and vice principles to support team work and cooperation and contribution management.
5) Appointing the effect of needing independence on individual entrepreneurship of university students.6)Appointing the effect of being a good conversationalist on individual entrepreneurship of university students.7) Appointing the effect of prognostication on individual entrepreneurship of university students.8) Appointing the effect of tolerating uncertainty on individual entrepreneurship of university students.

Table 4 .
What is the level of risk-taking in the university students majoring in cultural management?

Table 5 .
What is the level of requiring success in the university students majoring in cultural management?

Table 6 .
What is the level of having an internal control center in the university students majoring in cultural management?

Table 7 .
What is the level of creativity tendency in the university students majoring in cultural management?

Table 8 .
What is the level of needing independence in the university students majoring in cultural management?

Table 9 .
What is the level of tolerating uncertainty in the university students majoring in cultural management?

Table 10 .
What is the level of prognostication in the university students majoring in cultural management?

Table 11 .
What is the level of being a good conversationalist in the university students majoring in cultural management?
Figure 1.Conceptual Model of Research (Reference: Researcher)