The Role of Mentoring in Shaping Social Entrepreneurial Intentions in Southeast Asia

This study examines the impact of mentoring on social entrepreneurial intentions (SEI) among Southeast Asian university students. It assesses the influence of empathy, moral obligation, self-efficacy, and social support using a modified Mair and Noboa model and data from 194 final-year students at two Malaysian universities analyzed via Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Results show that mentoring, self-efficacy, social support, and prior experience significantly enhance SEI, while empathy and moral obligation do not. The research advocates for incorporating structured mentoring in educational curricula and suggests further exploration of how prior experiences, empathy, and moral obligation affect SEI.