ENTREPRENEURIAL PERSONALITY TRAITS AND DEVELOPMENT OF ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS AMONG FARMERS IN KNUCKLES REGION, SRI LANKA

Abstract

In recent years, entrepreneurship has played a critical role in adapting and innovating for the sustainable livelihoods of farming communities, particularly in developing countries like Sri Lanka. Farmers' entrepreneurial traits, including self-confidence, entrepreneurial interest, commitment, innovation ability, and leadership, influence the adoption of new practices. However, there is a lack of validated scales to assess these traits within the Sri Lankan context. This study primarily aimed to develop and validate a scale, secondarily to examine the influence of entrepreneurial traits on the skills of smallholder farmers. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 203 smallholder farmers in the Knuckles region of Matale District, Sri Lanka. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was carried out through Principal Component Analysis (PCA) followed by Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) to establish the validity of the proposed measurement model. CFA indicated a satisfactory model fit with robust validity and reliability measures. Greater Cronbach alpha values for the measurements clarified that the obtained factors were reliable for measuring entrepreneurial traits. Apart from that, the convergent and discriminant validity of the scale was also established to assess its validity. The results of predictive validity revealed that personality traits like leadership and innovative ability had a significant impact on the skill levels. The findings highlight the need to strengthen these traits through targeted training and capacity-building initiatives to enhance farmers' practical skills and promote resilient, innovative-driven agricultural communities.