Determinants of Entrepreneurial Intentions among Young Graduates in Morocco: A Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

entrepreneurship emerges as a strategic pathway to generate value, jobs and innovation. The international and regional literature converges on the view that “entrepreneurial intention?? — the deliberate, planned willingness to start a business — is the best predictor of subsequent start-up behaviour. Building on the Theory of Planned Behavior (Ajzen, 1991), the Entrepreneurial Event Model (Shapero & Sokol, 1982), and the self-efficacy stream (Bandura, 1986), based on a systematic literature review of a number of 36 andexed scopus articles and based on a PRISMA protocol. This review synthesizes, for the Moroccan context, the determinants of young graduates entrepreneurial intentions. We group them into three families: (1)psychological and personal drivers (attitude toward entrepreneurship, self-efficacy, risk tolerance, locus of control, achievement motivation); ‘)academic and institutional levers (quality of training, active learning, faculty support, and support infrastructures such as incubators, spitch contests, networks, and public programs like Intilaka. ()socio-economic and cultural conditions (access to finance, social norms, failure stigma, territorial disparities, and gender). Findings highlight the centrality of entrepreneurial self-efficacy and perceived behavioral control, the moderating influence of family and social norms within a collectivist environment, and the structuring role of university ecosystems that turn perceived desirability into feasibility through practice-based learning and mentorship. Methodologically, the review points to recurrent limitations (cross-sectional designs, urban sampling bias, limited attention to time, region and gender). Practically, it recommends an integrated policy mix combining experiential curricula, individualized coaching and financial facilitation (micro-finance, guarantees, incubator–bank pipelines) to convert numerous yet fragile intentions into viable, sustainable ventures. The paper contributes an integrative, contextualized framework for Morocco and a set of targeted, actionable recommendations for universities, policy-makers and support organizations.

JEL code: L26, M13.

Paper Type: Systematic Literature Review