ABSTRACT
This chapter investigates the effectiveness of entrepreneurship training programmes in supporting and developing aspiring entrepreneurs. It presents the main research questions, and describes the research methodology used, explaining how and why the particular cases and groups were selected. In designing the research programme, consideration was also given to the use of quantitative and qualitative approaches. Prior to commencing the actual research, a preliminary study was conducted with a small group of aspiring entrepreneurs who had just completed an entrepreneurship training programme. The in-depth interview method was chosen as it represents one of the most important sources of information, and, as a research method, has a major advantage over questionnaires, particularly in terms of adaptability. The surveys for both the control and comparator groups focused mainly on economic outputs, the progress of the business idea and the general benefits that were derived, or could have been potentially derived, by the aspiring entrepreneurs.
