AI-enabled entrepreneurial ecosystems and urban–rural differences in students' entrepreneurial intention: An integrated SOR–TPB analysis

Entrepreneurial intention among university students is increasingly shaped by complex interactions between institutional environments, individual cognition, and digital support systems. However, limited research has systematically examined how these mechanisms operate across urban and rural contexts in emerging economies. Addressing this gap, this study develops an integrated socio-psychological framework by combining the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) model and the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) within a digitally enabled entrepreneurial ecosystem. Based on survey data from 526 university students in eastern China, this study applies structural equation modeling and multi-group analysis to investigate region-specific intention formation processes. The findings demonstrate that entrepreneurial intention is primarily driven by internal cognitive and motivational mechanisms rather than social normative pressure, indicating a declining role of subjective norms among Generation Z students. Entrepreneurial motivation emerges as a critical conversion mechanism between ecosystem support and intention, yet its influence is context-dependent-exerting a significant effect among rural students but not among their urban counterparts. Moreover, distinct ecosystem configurations shape entrepreneurial pathways across regions, with urban students responding more strongly to institutional and resource-based support, while rural students are more influenced by infrastructural, social, and educational environments. By conceptualizing entrepreneurial ecosystems as socio-technical systems embedded with digital and AI-enabled support infrastructures, this study advances the explanatory boundaries of TPB and SOR and provides a theoretically grounded account of regional heterogeneity in entrepreneurial intention formation. The findings serve as a lens through which to examine differences in resource accessibility, AI and digital readiness, institutional support, and the degree of ecological embeddedness in promoting balanced and sustainable regional development.