Exploration of the entrepreneurial orientation and trait emotional intelligence in practicing pharmacists

The objectives of this study were 3-fold: to determine if there are differences in the level of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) of pharmacists in 5 upper Midwestern states; to determine if the EO of the pharmacists differs with age, sex, employment status, practice setting, or practice role; and to determine if there is a positive assocation between trait emotional intelligence (EI) and EO.

Item analysis, descriptive statistics, 1-way analysis of variance, Tukey test, Levene test of homogeneity of variances, Kruskal-Wallis tests, Pearson correlation coefficients, and an independent samples t test were used to analyze survey data.

Pharmacists in upper Midwest states.

EO and trait EI of pharmacists.

Pharmacists practicing in different settings exhibited no differences in EO; however, statistically significant differences were found in the EO of pharmacists by sex, age, and practice role. Pharmacists who owned a pharmacy had higher mean EOs for the constructs risk-taking, innovativeness, proactiveness, and autonomy. A positive correlation was found between global trait EI and all constructs of EO, suggesting that global trait EI could be used to predict EO in individuals.

It was identified that EO can be measured at the individual level. A high EO suggests that a person may have a higher interest or success with entrepreneurial activities. High levels of EO were found among pharmacists in the roles of owner or manager than those in the role of staff. A positive correlation was found between global trait EI and all constructs of EO, suggesting that global trait EI could be used to predict EO in individuals. Understanding EO at an individual level could be valuable to pharmacists who are interested in owning a pharmacy or in providing new patient services. A high trait EI could indicate greater entrepreneurial potential leading to greater career success.