Debajani Sahoo and Vijayudu Gnanamkonda
Purpose- The current study investigates the primary factors that motivate rural women to pursue entrepreneurial skills, as well as the impact of entrepreneurial aspects on their entrepreneurial participation, as mediated by entrepreneurial mindset. Design/methodology/approach- The convenience sampling approach was used to acquire a sample of 350 rural women entrepreneurs from the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana in rural India. The proposed model 'Women Entrepreneurial Engagement' is tested using the Structural Equation Model. The link between three dimensions, namely Women Entrepreneurship Dimensions, Entrepreneurial Attitude, and Entrepreneurial Engagement, is empirically tested using SPSS and AMOS software. Findings- The findings of the study showed that societal support, individual skill set, financial & legal support, and women's entrepreneurial attitude all have a positive impact on their entrepreneurial engagement, but that this effect is partially mediated by women's entrepreneurial attitude, which is based on the theory of planned behaviour. Research limitations/implications - This research can help governments, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), not-for-profit organisations, and other voluntary organisations develop/renew policies and strategies. The current study has provided an experimentally proven strategy to enable, develop, and build the entrepreneurial mentality among women entrepreneurs. Practical implications- The results can be given a path to the women entrepreneurship in rural India, promote rural women empowerment through entrepreneurship, create job opportunities that can be led to sustainable development of rural India. Originality/value- The present study is one of the unique empirical investigations that examines the antecedents of rural women's entrepreneurship dimensions and their engagement towards the entrepreneurial venture.