Entrepreneurship in Crisis: The Determinants of Syrian Refugees’ Entrepreneurial Intentions in Turkey

Abstract

This study aims to identify the determinants of entrepreneurial intentions among Syrian refugees in Turkey. The research, based on planned behaviour theory, focused on the impact of the refugee context on those intentions and thus on the attitudes and behaviour of entrepreneurs. The study is based on the positivist paradigm, and a quantitative methodology was used to collect data. We preferred the method of convenience sampling and chose 122 entrepreneurial projects at the beginning of 2020. The results show that psychological characteristics have no significant impact. Motivation, conviction, and independence are not sufficient conditions for the choice of an entrepreneurial profession. Self-standards do not affect the entrepreneurial intentions of refugees, as support from family and friends may not be sufficient reason to engage in an entrepreneurial project. However, entrepreneurship emerged among the refugees distinguished by perseverance, efficiency, a spirit of innovation, prior experience, adequate perceptions of barriers, and having the resources needed to implement projects. The refugee context has a negative emotional impact on entrepreneurship for reasons related to conditions of instability, language difficulties, the need for capital to invest, and a lack of entrepreneurial knowledge. The research findings can be used to support the role of humanitarian organisations, UN agencies, and host governments in developing a deeper understanding of entrepreneurial intentions in the refugee context.

1. Introduction

Entrepreneurship can be seen as a crucial factor in influencing the attitudes of individuals working to set up an entrepreneurial business. Our study is based on an analysis of the entrepreneurial intent (EI) of Syrian refugees in Turkey, with the aim of verifying the assumption that the determinants of entrepreneurship for refugees differ from those of entrepreneurs in natural contexts, taking into account, for example, economic, social, and cultural factors. Entrepreneurship is not an attractive career choice [1] but a necessity [2,3]. It is a way out of unemployment [4] and an adaptation to the host country [5]. In recent years, entrepreneurship researchers have become increasingly interested in the intentions and motives that make it possible to predict the actions of entrepreneurs [6,7]. Entrepreneurship has become a modern career approach that creates jobs and reduces unemployment. Therefore, many countries are trying to encourage entrepreneurs to start their own small- and medium-sized enterprises to improve national economic development [8,9,10] and the sustainability of these pioneering projects, as well as achieving business opportunities and contributing to social and economic development [11,12].

Syria continues to face several challenges owing to the ongoing conflict, which has led to the influx of huge numbers of refugees to many countries, especially Turkey [13]. UN and government reports have stated that the large number of Syrian refugees in Turkey surpasses the capacity of state institutions to accommodate them; there are estimated to be 3,624,517 Syrian refugees in Turkey alone [14,15]. In reality, the refugee workforce has faced a range of obstacles [16] that restrict their ability to integrate into new cultures, partially due to a lack of both the experience and skills needed by the labour market when pursuing a decent job opportunity [17]. In addition, the economic and social context imposes a difficult reality, with obstacles created by unstable living situations and financial, cognitive, social, and cultural factors [5,18]. Despite all these circumstances, some refugees were able to start entrepreneurial activities that would enable them and their families to integrate. The role of international and local organisations in this refugee segment was limited to providing training and empowerment programs to help them integrate and adjust to their new circumstances [19].

A review of previous research indicates the multiplicity of approaches to describing the phenomenon of entrepreneurship in explaining entrepreneurial behaviour [20,21]. However, the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) is the theory most used to describe entrepreneurial motivation as a real and predictive incentive to influence the behaviour of an entrepreneur to start self-employment [22,23,24].

This theory provides a strong basis to support our claim that refugees’ entrepreneurial intent influences their behaviour, especially in light of some contextual environmental factors related to their situation. Although there are various studies in the field of entrepreneurship under ideal circumstances, studies in the field of entrepreneurship in relation to refugees are modest or relatively few [5,17,25].

There is a dearth of studies on the impact of the economic and social context on the intent of Syrian refugees in Turkey to set up entrepreneurial ventures and become self-employed. This research gap leads us to ask two questions: (a) To what extent does the intention of entrepreneurship affect the behaviour of Syrian refugees in creating new enterprises and working on their own account? (b) Do contextual factors, as additional determinants, have an effect on the entrepreneurial intent of Syrian refugees in Turkey? One of the main objectives of this study is to attempt to address the identified research gap. We then analyse the impact of refugees’ specific contexts on their intentions and choices. This study contributes to providing a model that may be useful for government policy-makers and international organisations in understanding refugee behaviour and the obstacles they face in integrating and obtaining decent job opportunities within their resettlement programs.

The research is organised as follows: a literature review, providing a conceptual framework supporting the study hypotheses; the choice of study methodology; testing the research hypotheses through statistical programs; and a discussion of the results, the limits of the research, and the possible prospects for new research in this field.

2. Literature Review and Hypotheses Development

Researchers have made important contributions to understanding how and why individuals create new ventures and to learning why certain individuals are more open to entrepreneurship than others [26,27,28]. Other researchers have suggested that entrepreneurship is an intentional and planned action that fits into models of intent [19,29,30].

Previous studies have shown that intentions have been explained by cognitive theory [31,32,33]—especially psychological theories, which have led to the derivation of a collection of models for the analysis of determinants of entrepreneurial intent [34,35,36] and planned behaviour theory [22,37]. Nevertheless, TPB emerged as one of the most important of these models in explaining the phenomenon of entrepreneurial intent [21,24,38,39]. As these models have led to a deeper understanding of the intentions of entrepreneurs and a greater capacity to predict and generalise, they can be relied on as a theoretical basis for their ability to incorporate external factors that contribute to the development of intentions [19].

Entrepreneurial intent models focus on an event before the implementation process begins. Intention is a state of knowledge and a conscious desire in the present to achieve specific experiences and goals in the future [40]. Therefore, intention contributes to directing ideas and preparing the necessary plans that may be feasible in reality, exploiting any available opportunities, whether in the creation of new pilot projects or adding new values to existing projects [41]. Krueger and colleagues stated that intentions are the best predictor of any planned behaviour, and the results of their previous research support the efficacy of the theory of planned behaviour as a predictor of entrepreneurial intention [19].

The theory of planned behaviour (TPB) refers to three determinants of entrepreneurial intent (attitude towards the behaviour, subjective norms, and perceived behavioural control) that may influence decision-making in individuals seeking to set up their own business. However, the relative importance of any of these variables varies from one behaviour to another [42], and from one context to another [24]. In this research, a fourth determinant was added: the refugee context as shown in Figure 1.

2.1. Attitude towards the Behaviour (ATB)

Attitude towards the behaviour (ATB) generally indicates the degree to which the performance of the assumed behaviour has a negative or positive value for the entrepreneur. Douglas and Shepherd argue that the intention to be an entrepreneur is stronger with more positive attitudes, in particular towards the risk, independence, autonomy, and income offered [43]. Moreover, they expound that attitudes predict behavioural intentions, where positive attitudes have a greater influence than negative attitudes [44]. However, Hwang and colleagues suggest strengthening individuals’ positive attitudes about conduct when the consequences are favourable [45]. Where an entrepreneur perceives that self-employment maximises capabilities and skills and expects to benefit, this expectation enhances entrepreneurial motivation, and thus forms the motivation behaviour [46,47]. Consequently, an entrepreneurial intention arises in this person [48]. Starting an entrepreneurial venture requires knowledge on several different levels: personal, organisational, and even knowledge of the general context of the economy and methods of creating a business. This knowledge plays a major role in shaping the intention to start a business and gives the business-owner greater credibility with influential stakeholders in implementing the entrepreneurship venture [31,48].

Hypothesis 1 (H1).

Attitudes have a significant effect on entrepreneurial intentions.

2.2. Subjective Norms (SN)

Subjective norms (SN) indicate the perceived social pressure to implement or not implement entrepreneurial behaviour. It represents a person’s perception of beliefs important to others (family, friends, teachers, and experts) about whether they should or should not perform the behaviour [49,50]. Turker and Selcuk noted that fostering entrepreneurship requires inclusive support, including the cooperation of all sectors in a society [51]. This is known as structural support. Although some studies have shown that individuals’ intentions can be affected by the views and encouragement of others [52], such as relatives, friends, government, and educational institutions [53], these results are not consistent with other studies conducted by Peterman and Kennedy [54]. Liñán and Chen argue that the power of the norm of family and friends as an intention-influencing variable is a relative issue in intention models [55]. Despite this, the findings of Armitage and Conner’s study indicate that (SN) has limited significance in determining behavioural intentions [56]. La Barbera and Ajzen indicated that subjective criteria could predict intentions [57].

Hypothesis 2 (H2).

Subjective norms have a significant effect on entrepreneurial intentions.

2.3. Perceived Behavioural Control (PBC)

Perceived behavioural control (PBC) can be described as the perceived ease or difficulty of carrying out the conduct of interest (becoming an entrepreneur). It is therefore a term somewhat similar to perceived self-efficacy, indicating the degree to which a person possesses the skills, resources, and other requirements necessary to perform a particular activity [58]. In all three cases, it is important to have a sense of potential for the execution of firm creative behaviours [36]. It is widely recognized that a person’s intentions to initiate or stop a behaviour are determined by his beliefs, perceptions, and the number of resources or opportunities available [44]. Some studies show that individuals with a higher tendency to risk are more inclined to practise entrepreneurial behaviour because they feel more confident in their ability to succeed as an entrepreneur and more comfortable in dealing with perilous situations. Moreover, they are abler to control outcomes and earn positive rewards [59,60]. This is because perceived risks and rewards have an effect on individuals’ attitudes, as these engrained attitudes can influence individuals’ intentions [61].

Hypothesis 3 (H3).

Perceived behaviour has a significant effect on entrepreneurial intentions.

2.4. Refugee Context (RC)

As Krueger and Brazeal have suggested, in order to encourage entrepreneurship, there must be the potential for entrepreneurship for individuals and organisations alike [35]. Some research has shown the impact of a combination of contextual factors that may create the right atmosphere for the start of a new project [31]. These factors, such as the availability of financial savings, level of education, government support, and infrastructure form an individual’s push or pull towards self-employment [62,63,64].

Reynolds and colleagues distinguish between entrepreneurship based on opportunity and that based on necessity [65]. The first involves individuals who want to start their own business by taking advantage of entrepreneurial potential without any external pressure or intimidation. They translate abstract ideas into reality by making regular efforts and using the resources available; through this, they turn an abstract idea into a reality. In contrast, the second involves necessity-based entrepreneurship for persons who begin a business because other options for employment are either unsatisfactory or absent.

Economic necessity and difficulties in finding paid employment can often push refugees into self-employment. Previous research in countries with medium and low economies indicated that entrepreneurs are motivated by survival and necessity [66]. Refugees are vulnerable to unemployment, their potential for ‘good’ jobs remains limited, and they tend to congregate in low-level, low-skill jobs. As in many other host countries, refugees face employment barriers related to language, qualifications, unrecognized or undervalued experiences, and a ‘cultural gap’ in the workplace. The UNHCR has described refugees as people who have left their normal place of residence and are unable to return due to the threats to which they may be exposed [33,67]. Meanwhile, immigrants are not exposed to the same conditions as refugees because the positive attitudes of natives toward immigrants positively moderate this relationship [68]. Moreover, some of them confirmed that the removal of discriminatory barriers against migrants in labour and financial markets will boost growth in both sending and receiving countries [69].

In fact, despite the lack of studies on the obstacles facing entrepreneurs among refugees, some researchers have suggested there are four main types of obstacle: legislative, financial, social, and cultural [70]. In addition to these barriers, there are threats of discrimination in the labour market [71]. In other words, refugees, many of whom have already experienced trauma in their home nations, may continue to do so even after immigration [72]. There are elements of entrepreneurship that are attractive to refugees, such as the prospect of financial stability and independence. Self-employment may offer the potential for enhanced professional standing and a higher income than other forms of employment. Previous entrepreneurial experience is an incentive for a person to start a business; this is likely to be because useful skills are acquired from past experience, even in the event of failure [73,74].

Hypothesis 4 (H4).

Refugee context has a significant effect on entrepreneurial intentions.

3. Research Methodology

3.1. Context

To test our hypotheses, we used a quantitative approach to collecting data [75]. To conduct the study, we relied on the Saed Charity Association (registration number 31-020-03 in 2014) to provide a statistical list of the number of refugee entrepreneurship ventures, their geographical locations, and their addresses. The association works on implementing various projects in most human sectors and is accredited by the UN and its agencies. The community in the statistical study underwent training programs and financial support to start their entrepreneurial ventures, and some financial facilities were provided to them in addition to the payment of financial loans.

3.2. Sampling Method

Based on the association’s statistics in 2020, we obtained a list of 147 entrepreneurial projects for Syrian refugees in two Turkish provinces: Antakya and Urfa. The research sample follows the method of convenience sampling [76,77]. The choice of this type of sample is based on parameters such as geographical proximity, ease of access for entrepreneurs, and timely response [76]. The sample consists of two groups, and the questionnaire was distributed to them in their shops and projects. The first group, in Antakya province, consisted of 55 projects, and the second group, in Urfa province, consisted of 92 projects. A total of 122 valid questionnaires were retrieved for statistical analysis. It was not possible to meet 19 entrepreneurs due to the closure of these projects. Six copies were incomplete.

3.3. Description of Sample Characteristics

The analysis of the demographic variables of the Syrian entrepreneurs in Turkey revealed that the majority (82%) of entrepreneurs were men. A total of 43.4% of the respondents were young, ranging from 30 to 40 years old. More than 50% of the sample had a secondary school certificate. A total of 41.8% of the sampled entrepreneurs had previous freelance jobs in the same field they are currently working in. Almost a third of the sample had more than six years of experience.

3.4. Variables Measurement

The questionnaire in the present study was divided into two sections. The first contained determinants of entrepreneurial intent, where attitudes toward entrepreneurship were measured in terms of three components (AT₁, AT₂, and AT₃) reflecting the reasons people stated for preferring self-employment as an economic opportunity: challenge, independence, and self-realisation. The subjective norms were measured in terms of three items (SN₁, SN₂, and SN₃) reflecting the desire to comply with the support of family and friends, and the perceived behavioural control was measured in terms of four items (PB₁, PB₂, PB₃, and PB₄) that, according to studies, reflect the ease of self-evaluation or difficulty in being an entrepreneur [19,37]. The refugee context factor was measured through four elements (RC₁, RC₂, RC₃, and RC₄) that reflect the availability of financial and knowledge support, legal and administrative facilities for the host government, and the benefits it provides to entrepreneurs [25]. The second contained the entrepreneurial intention variable, which was measured through three general items (EI₁, EI₂, and EI₃) that indicate different aspects of intention, such as planning to become self-employed, spending more time acquiring entrepreneurial knowledge and learning how to set up companies, and saving the money necessary for setting up a business [78]. The different search variables were measured with a five-item Likert scale [79]. Finally, AMOS was used for (SEM) to analyse the relationships between these variables (Check Appendix A).

4. Research Results

4.1. Exploratory Study

To identify the number of variables in the current study, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was utilised by the SPSS program. The varimax method of rotation was adopted to determine the principal components. Five factors were acquired: attitudes (AT), consisting of three items; subjective norms (SN), also consisting of three items; perceived behaviour (PB), comprising of four items; refugee context (RC), also comprising of four items; and entrepreneurship intentions (EI), consisting of three items. These are shown in

Table 1. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA).

Factors	Items	Loading	Communalities	Eigen Value	Variance Explained
Attitudes (AT)	AT1	0.672	0.672	2.186	12.856
	AT2	0.772	0.714
	AT3	0.834	0.728
Subjective Norms (SN)	SN1	0.832	0.758	1.981	11.654
	SN2	0.763	0.710
	SN3	0.619	0.662
Perceived Behavior (PB)	PB1	0.722	0.689	2.839	16.698
	PB2	0.865	0.774
	PB3	0.769	0.660
	PB4	0.744	0.687
Refugee Context (RC)	RC1	0.793	0.730	2.828	16.634
	RC2	0.840	0.734
	RC3	0.808	0.752
	RC4	0.753	0.701
Entrepreneurial Intentions (EI)	EI1	0.751	0.645	2.190	12.883
	EI2	0.775	0.700
	EI3	0.774	0.708
KMO = 0.776			Bartlett’s Test = 930.787 Sig. = 0.000		σ2 = 70.725

.

Exploratory factor analysis conditions were fulfilled as shown in Table 1. The values of communalities were higher than 0.5 [80]; Eigen values were greater than one for each factor [81]. KMO = 0.776 > 0.60, Bartlett’s test = 930.787, with sig. = 0.000 < 0.05, and the cumulative variance = 70.725 > 60 [82,83]. Moreover, all study items were loaded more than 0.40 [84]. These results indicate that it was appropriate to use EFA for the data collected [85].

After determining the study factors by EFA, the descriptive analysis for study variables were performed. The findings in

Table 2. Descriptive statistics and normality test.

Variable	Item	Cronbach’s Alpha	Mean	Std. Deviation	Skewness	Kurtosis
Attitudes (AT)	AT1	0.779	4.3661	0.70601	−1.245	1.372
	AT2
	AT3
Subjective Norms (SN)	SN1	0.705	4.0437	0.59836	−0.897	2.086
	SN2
	SN3
Perceived Behavior (PB)	PB1	0.838	4.2787	0.61674	−0.608	0.023
	PB2
	PB3
	PB4
Refugee Context (RC)	RC1	0.847	3.6393	0.97545	−0.388	−0.607
	RC2
	RC3
	RC4
Entrepreneurial Intentions (EI)	EI1	0.730	3.3169	0.81633	0.020	−0.337
	EI2
	EI3

reveal that the coefficients of Cronbach’s alpha for all the study variables were more than 0.70 [86,87]. Moreover, the means of the study variables were high, except for entrepreneurial intentions, which was at a moderate level. Skewness and kurtosis statistics were made to identify the normality test of the study variables; the results indicate that all values were within the acceptable limits of between −3 and +3 [88].

Bish and colleagues recommended a test of Harman’s one-factor as a corrective measure to determine the common method bias in the current study [89], where all 17 items were loaded into one common factor by the analysis of the principal components. The results in

Table 3. Common Method Variance (CMV).

Components	Total	Variance	Cumulative	Total	Variance	Cumulative
1	4.736	27.861	27.861	4.736	27.861	27.861
2	3.267	19.218	47.078
.	.	.	.
.	.	.	.
16	0.205	1.208	98.931
17	0.182	1.069	100.000

.: indicate the presence of many components in our study.

show that the cumulative variance was 27.861%, which is lower than the assumed threshold point (<50%) [90]. Therefore, it was found that common method bias did not have a significant effect on the data collected in this research.

4.2. Confirmatory Study

CFA was conducted to determine the extent to which the number of measured variables represents constructs. The findings in

Table 4. Confirmatory factor analysis results (CFA) and discriminant analysis.

Constructs	Items	Standardized Factor Loadings SFL > 0.50	Square Multiple Correlation SMC > 0.30	Composite Reliability CR > 0.70	Average Variance Explained AVE > 0.50
Attitudes (AT)	AT1	0.729	0.532	0.805	0.581
	AT2	0.798	0.637
	AT3	0.686	0.470
Subjective Norms (SN)	SN1	0.760	0.577	0.785	0.552
	SN2	0.799	0.638
	SN3	0.513	0.363
Perceived Behavior (PB)	PB1	0.819	0.671	0.894	0.565
	PB2	0.666	0.444
	PB3	0.658	0.432
	PB4	0.830	0.689
Refugee Context (RC)	RC1	0.698	0.487	0.909	0.596
	RC2	0.685	0.469
	RC3	0.884	0.782
	RC4	0.702	0.493
Entrepreneurial Intentions (EI)	EI1	0.693	0.480	0.810	0.541
	EI2	0.718	0.515
	EI3	0.694	0.482

exhibit that all fit indices were within the satisfactory range [91]. The standardised factor loading (SFL) values were above 0.50 [92]. Moreover, the square multiple correlation values (SMC) override the acceptable level of 0.30 [93].

The values of the constructs’ composite reliability (CR) were higher than 0.70 [94], i.e., AT = 0.805, SN = 0.785, PB = 0.894, RC = 0.909, and EI = 0.810. This was affirmed by the average variance explained test (AVE). All the constructs were higher than 0.50 [95], i.e., AT = 0.581, SN = 0.552, PB = 0.565, RC = 0.596, and EI = 0.541.

To identify the multi-collinearity condition among independent variables, tolerance and variance inflation factor tests were performed. The findings in

Table 5. Discriminant analysis and test of multi-collinearity.

Variable	T > 0.05	VIF < 10	AT	SN	PB	CR	EI	$\sqrt[2]{\mathbf{AVE}}$
AT	0.731	1.368	1	0.403 **	0.420 **	0.288 **	−0.034	0.762
SN	0.741	1.350		1	0.390 **	0.313 **	0.075	0.742
PB	0.765	1.307			1	0.162	0.292 **	0.751
CR	0.871	1.149				1	−0.329 **	0.772
EI	-	-					1	0.735

** Significant at 0.01.

confirm that all the tolerance values exceeded 0.05, and the inflation variance factor values were below 10. Thus, the condition was achieved [96]. Table 5 illustrates that the AVE square root values in each row were greater than the values of correlation listed in that row [97]. Consequently, these results confirm that the adequate discriminant validity has been achieved. Furthermore, there are significant relationships between the majority of the study variables at a significance level 0.01.

4.3. Testing the Structural Model

SEM was performed to test the model of the present study, using AMOS software. Figure 2 displays the direct effect of attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behaviour, and refugee context on entrepreneurial intentions.

Table 6. Fit Indices of the Model.

Fit Indices	CMIN/DF	RMR	RMSEA	GFI	CFI	IFI	PGFI	PNFI
Measured	1.775	0.072	0.079	0.905	0.907	0.911	0.582	0.623
Recommended	<5	<0.08	<0.08	>0.90	>0.90	>0.90	>0.50	>0.50

displays the fit indices of the study model, where the value of CMIN/DF = 1.775 was less than 5; the indices of RMR = 0.072 and RMSEA = 0.079 were less than 0.08; the indices of GFI = 0.905, CFI = 0.907, and IFI = 0.911 were more than 0.9; and the indices of PGFI = 0.582 and PNFI = 0.623 were higher than 0.50. All of these indices are appropriate [98,99].

The results obtained from direct effect are summarised in

Table 7. Indirect effects.

Hypotheses	Path	Estimate	T-Value; T > 1.96	p-Value; p < 0.05	Result
H1	AT EI	−0.29	−1.84	0.065	Not Supported
H2	SN EI	0.17	1.27	0.203	Not Supported
H3	PB EI	0.56	3.56	***	Supported
H4	RC EI	−0.48	−3.78	***	Supported

Significant Effect, Insignificant Effect. *** Significant at 0.001.

. The direct path analysis shows that attitudes and subjective norms have no significant effect on entrepreneurial intentions. Consequently, the first and second hypotheses (H1 and H2) are not supported. The analysis found entrepreneurial intentions to be positively affected by perceived behaviour (path coefficient = 0.56, T-value = 3.56, p-value = 0.000). Thus, the third hypothesis (H3) is supported. Conversely, the refugee context has an adverse significant effect on entrepreneurial intentions (path coefficient = −0.48, T-value = −3.78, p-value = 0.000), supporting the fourth hypothesis (H4).

5. Discussion and Conclusions

Our starting point was the size of the problem that the host governments suffer as a result of the presence of large numbers of refugees, and the clear and appropriate role that entrepreneurs play in economic growth. Hence, high start-up rates will contribute to reducing the refugee burden. Particularly, we considered the role of the asylum context in supporting entrepreneurship. This paper has attempted to provide further explanation about the theoretical determinants that identify the decision to found a start-up, based on the idea that entrepreneurial intent is a key factor in explaining business-creation activity by relying on planned behaviour theory [22].

The purpose of the study was to investigate the entrepreneurial intent of Syrian refugees in Turkey by studying the effect of three determinants on entrepreneurial intent, according to TPB. These determinants were attitude towards behaviour, subjective norms, and perceived behavioural control. TPB was applied to identify the factors most influencing entrepreneurial intentions among refugees in relation to three hypotheses (H1, H2, H3). A fourth hypothesis (H4) was developed regarding the effect of refugees’ context on entrepreneurial intention. Our research methodology allowed data to be collected for a wide range of entrepreneurial projects for Syrian refugees, based on the statistical data of one of the largest charities specialising in providing support and assistance programs for Syrian refugees in Turkey.

This research deepened our understanding of the dimensions of entrepreneurship intent among refugees. The findings concerning attitudes towards entrepreneurial behaviour suggest that no significant effects for traits like psychological explanations on entrepreneurial intention, if refugees’ cases are considered. Psychological attributes are not necessary nor sufficient conditions for choosing the career of entrepreneurship, nor are they just innate qualities completely separate from contextual factors influencing entrepreneurial intentions. Thus, refugees, who attach more importance to conviction, achievement motives, and autonomy, are not necessarily more likely to intend to start a business. However, subjective norms have no effect on the entrepreneurial intentions of refugees. Our analysis found that refugees who receive support from family and friends are not necessarily more likely to have intentions to start a self-employed business. Most studies confirm that the greater the individual’s motivation to comply with the opinions or suggestions of others, the higher the level of intention to become an entrepreneur. Subjective norms by significant people such as family and friends did not seem to influence entrepreneurial intentions in our case. This finding supported by the studies of Maresch et al. and Ruiz et al. [100,101], which show that the context varies. In contrast, positive relations between subjective norms, attitude towards behaviour, and entrepreneurial intentions have been found by many researchers [19,52,55].

Refugees who are characterised by persistent creativity and entrepreneurial self-efficacy are more likely to intend to start a business. This means that most of the refugees in the study sample evaluate entrepreneurial behaviour positively, and most of them have previous experience in their field of work, so this work is considered simple and they have the ability to do it easily. This could be the case if the perceived refugee assessment is right and takes into account other objective variables that may affect their attitudes. This indicates that the refugees who have entrepreneurship intentions are those who have previous entrepreneurial experience and understand the possible barriers that can arise when implementing a business. This finding has been confirmed by several studies [52,102,103]. However, it is inconsistent with the results of Shah et al.’s study [104].

Our findings were that the refugee context has a significant negative influence on entrepreneurial intention. This is caused by the existence of many barriers to the entrepreneurial intention formation, such as difficulties related to language, the lack of availability of start-up capital and entrepreneurial knowledge, the orientation of international organisations to support emergency cases, and the temporary protection status where the government treats the Syrians as guests. Some studies have also confirmed the refugees have not enough time to plan, save enough money, or learn the language [17,68,105]. This means that the refugees often face difficulties in moving around and do not have the ability to start a business. The refugee context is the context of lived experience, which differs from the educational context in which most studies have been applied. In this context, behaviours and intentions are shaped by the difficult events of the life of the refugee. These difficulties were confirmed by Shinnar and Zamantili [106]. Starting a business is challenging, especially when you are a foreigner.

6. Theoretical and Practical Implications

This study, through the presented model, contributes to improving knowledge of the determinants and factors affecting entrepreneurship intentions. It contributes to providing a wider understanding of entrepreneurial intentions in refugee contexts. The results of this study have several implications. Because the decision to become an entrepreneur may be seen as a voluntary and conscious behaviour, making this decision in abnormal circumstances such as asylum requires a broader knowledge of the requirements for starting an entrepreneurial enterprise, due to the great challenges of these exceptional circumstances. These research findings can be used to support the role of humanitarian organisations and UN agencies, as well as host governments, in promoting entrepreneurship among refugees. Understanding the ways in which many behavioural and psychological characteristics effect entrepreneurial intent in the asylum context can help enhance our knowledge of the push-and-pull factors around entrepreneurship in such circumstances. The results of the study encourage administrators, decision-makers, and program planners in international agencies and humanitarian organisations to focus on the set of factors and determinants that particularly affect refugees, and which contribute to enhancing their intentions towards achieving common economic, social, and humanitarian goals: hence, a sustainable livelihood for refugees.

7. Limitations and Directions for Future Studies

Studies on the intention of refugees to start a business are limited, despite their importance and value to all parties: refugees, UN organisations, and host countries. In the context of refugees, access to the study community itself is a major challenge for researchers. There are also many questions that need to be answered. This study serves as a starting point for further research to compare the entrepreneurial intent of host societies and refugees and the entrepreneurial motives of necessity or opportunity. There is also the potential for future research to use this study as a starting point for exploring the impact of context on different groups of refugees in different countries. Including more projects in the study could facilitate the further generalisation of the findings and override warnings about the appropriate sampling method.