PERFORMANCE OF THE ENTREPRENEURIAL UNIVERSITY: THE ROLES OF SOCIAL CAPITAL

Abstract

Entrepreneurship is thus considered as one important determinant to generate knowledge-based economic growth. Since today’s entrepreneurship deals with heterogeneous groups, the norms and values that govern interactions and relationships among people and institutions must be given due emphasis. In recent years there is growing empirical evidence that social capital contributes significantly to development and sustainability. However, literature on the role of social capital in enhancing the performance of the entrepreneurial university in Malaysia is scarce and perhaps almost absent. The main objective of this study is to identify the impacts of social capital towards the performance of an entrepreneurial university. Specifically, this study focuses on exploring the potentials of social capital in enhancing the performance of the entrepreneurial university in Malaysia through four main elements namely: trust, networking, shared values and shared vision. A literature review was conducted to identify and develop appropriate research instruments to be utilized in this study. Quantitative method approach was used in this research. Selected respondents was taken among the six public university which is University Technology Mara (UiTM),UniversityTeknikal Malaysia Melaka(UTeM), University Utara Malaysia(UUM), University Putra Malaysia(UPM), UniversitiTeknologi Malaysia(UTM) and University Malaysia Perlis(UNIMAP) as they are among the five finalists of MOHE Entrepreneurial Awards (MEA) in 2012. Subsequently, this study employed a descriptive and inferential analysis to test the conceptual framework in order to understand the impacts of social capital on the performance of an entrepreneurial university. This study providesrecommendations for university management to review specific policies initiatives and strategies related to social capital towards enhancing the performance of entrepreneurial universities in Malaysia.