Indicators and Markers of Digital Entrepreneurship in Higher Education

Continuous advances in digital technology and digitization of business models have changed the entrepreneurial landscape and redefined the goals and requirements of entrepreneurship education to match the new digital reality in entrepreneurship. In order to gain a detailed understanding of the hybrid concept of digital entrepreneurship and its role in the evolution of the innovation system, the purpose of this research was to determine the indicators and markers of digital entrepreneurship in higher education.

The research approach was mixed (qualitative and quantitative). The qualitative phase was a systematic review of up-to-date articles in the field of digital entrepreneurship, and finally 53 articles were selected and analyzed using the open and axial coding method of Strauss and Corbin (1997). The quantitative phase was also conducted using a survey questionnaire compiled from the results of the quantitative section, the respondents of which were faculty members familiar with entrepreneurship topics and experts in the field of digital entrepreneurship, and 372 out of 385 people were selected. Quantitative sections were evaluated.

The results of the research extracted a conceptual framework in the four main axes, teaching and learning, success factors and barriers, behavioral approach and suitable ecosystems for digital entrepreneurship in higher education. In the field of education and learning sub-categories "mastery of information and communication technology in business (5 markers); Learning approaches (5 markers) and digital learning environments (2 markers)"; Factors and barriers to success with subcategories: enablers (3 markers) and obstacles (2 markers); behavioral approach domain with subcategories: personality (4 markers), motivational factors (5 markers), ecosystem dimension domain with subcategories : Digital entrepreneurship ecosystems (3 markers), teams and networking (33 markers) and human capital (3 markers) were formed.

Discussion and analysis: 

The results presented in this article suggest the use of a scientific approach in order to understand how the specific dimensions of the entrepreneurship system in higher education are interrelated. In an effort to gain deeper knowledge of digital entrepreneurship in higher education as part of the innovation system, a comparative study approach may be useful not only within specific geographic boundaries but also internationally. Also, the results showed that beyond From the organizational context to create an entrepreneurship ecosystem in the university, the implications of appropriate policies regarding the creation of a supportive ecosystem are very important.