Need for Power Predicts Career Intent in University Students

Abstract

Previous research has indicated robust relationships between implicit motives and various indices of career preference and performance, with the implicit need for power ( nPow) and the implicit need for achievement ( nAch) found to associate with leadership and entrepreneurship, respectively. However, relatively little work has examined the relationships between implicit motivation and career intention. In the present study, 149 university students completed questionnaires assessing their intention to embark on entrepreneurial, professional, or leadership careers, while implicit motivation was measured using the picture story exercise. nPow was found to positively predict entrepreneurial intent and to negatively predict professional intent, while higher nPow was positively associated with both entrepreneurial and leadership career choice. nAch did not associate significantly with any of the intent or choice measures. These results tentatively suggest a previously undocumented relationship between nPow and entrepreneurial ambition, and possible differences in the motivational profiles of aspiring and actual entrepreneurs.