Out-of-School Youth in Mindanao, Philippines: A Case Study Supporting the Upload Jobs Entrepreneurship- Training Program

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2016-12
Authors
Lai, Cynthia
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[Honolulu] : [University of Hawaii at Manoa], [December 2016]
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The UPLOAD JOBS entrepreneurship-training program was implemented by the United States Agency for International Development to enable out-of-school youth (OSY, 18 – 24 years) entrepreneurship in Mindanao, Philippines. To effectively manage the program in this international context, this dissertation collected, assessed and contributed to a rare database of context and entrepreneurship-specific information about OSY, respectively. First, a ‘Youth Potential Entrepreneur’ (YPE) questionnaire was developed to gather and report OSY demographics, entrepreneurship characteristics, and personality traits to help customize the program’s design and implementation. Data collected from the YPE questionnaire informed that OSY are educated (i.e., high school diploma) and have potential for entrepreneurship (i.e., positive entrepreneurship motivations, aspirations and personality traits); however, represent necessity entrepreneurs that have minimal entrepreneurship knowledge and access to social, physical and financial resources to start a new business, respectively. Second, items measuring OSY autonomy, risk-taking propensity, and innovativeness, cited to characterize the ‘successful’ entrepreneur, proved effective as a measurement model to screen their entrepreneurship ‘potential’ for program entry to help manage resources and performance outcomes. Third, a ‘Youth Population Survey’ was developed to assess the program’s screening and performance outcomes by measuring OSY’s entrepreneurship perceptions, attitudes and activities. Data collected indicated that screening differentiated OSY’s responses compared to those who were not screened, and that the program succeeded in fostering new entrepreneurs (i.e., business owners); however, fell short on fostering their positive entrepreneurship perceptions and attitudes. Finally, it was determined that OSY employment (including self-employment) probabilities are significantly influenced by cultural (i.e., family business ownership) and psychological determinants (i.e., risk-taking), informing policy and programs that enabling OSY employment (including self-employment) in this region is complex and may go beyond basic skills and knowledge training that entrepreneurship-training programs provide. Findings suggest that OSY represent a valuable resource of entrepreneurship potential; however, existing measurement tools need to be adapted to OSY context to address the gap between the extant entrepreneurship, psychology and development literature, and the management of OSY and entrepreneurship training programs in developing countries.
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Ph.D. University of Hawaii at Manoa 2016.
Includes bibliographical references.
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Out-of-school youth, entrepreneurship, employment, Mindanao, Philippines
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Theses for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (University of Hawaii at Manoa). Natural Resources & Environmental Management
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