Dear Participant:

Greetings in the name of St. Thomas Aquinas!

I am Danielle L. Fredeluces, a Master in Business Administration student from the University of Santo Tomas. I am presently conducting research on “Factors Affecting the Entrepreneurial Intentions of Business Graduates in Metro Manila” under the guidance of Dr. Antonio Jr. E. Etrata, Ph.D.

Pursuant to this, you have been invited to be one of the participants in the survey. The ensuing information outlines the ethical guidelines for the study:

PURPOSE: As per the research title, this study aims to determine the various factors that affect entrepreneurial intentions among business graduates in the National Capital Region, focusing on factors such as the demographics of the individual, their social valuation on entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial culture, economic entrepreneurial viability, perceived knowledge in entrepreneurship, as well as assessing the moderating effects of family entrepreneurial background. The rationale of this study is to discover the attributes that contribute to the ideals of Filipinos regarding entrepreneurship and why most of the Filipino population persists on pursuing employment over the financial advantages of business creation. Determining these factors will be instrumental in eliminating the barriers to venture creation and may lead to the enhancement of the support, whether social or political, necessary to engage in entrepreneurship. These are all contributory to the purpose of the study, which is to encourage more Filipinos to view entrepreneurship as a viable career choice, and to help government agencies and other organizations to come up with more practical solutions to the obstacles that hinder the Filipino community from pursuing such ventures.

PROCEDURE: The survey questionnaires will be disseminated to consenting graduates of business-related degrees for the past ten (10) years from colleges or universities in Metro Manila. The survey is divided into five (5) sections: A) Screening; B) Demographics; C) Perceptions on Entrepreneurship, which refer to the various contextual factors on entrepreneurship (social valuation, culture, economic viability, and perceived knowledge) and will be answered using a 4-point Likert scale; D) Respondent’s Family Entrepreneurial Background, and; E) Respondent’s Entrepreneurial Intention.

DURATION: The whole survey questionnaire will require approximately 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the respondents.

VOLUNTARINESS OF PARTICIPATION: Participating in the survey is completely voluntary. The respondent may refuse to continue answering the survey at any time and will not be subject to any negative consequences.

RISKS: There will be questions pertaining to the financial and personal capacity of the respondents (individual income, personal and family’s current and past business situation). As such, names of the participants will not be required, and control numbers will be used instead to track the survey entries. Under the Voluntariness clause, the respondent may discontinue answering the questionnaire with no repercussions. Although it is important to note that incomplete survey entries (apart from questions labelled as “optional”) will be deemed invalid and will be discarded. Respondents who failed the screening or those with invalid survey entries will not be eligible to join the raffle draw.

CONFIDENTIALITY: This study will abide by the provisions set out by the Data Privacy Act of the Philippines. Any data collected from the participants in this research will be treated as confidential and will be handled with care and protection. Stringent data management practices will be implemented, and access will be restricted to the researcher, adviser, and statistician. The study will refrain from using sensitive personal information or any other identifiable details. Upon the conclusion of the study, data will be deleted from the researcher's files to ensure the confidentiality of the respondents.

BENEFITS AND COMPENSATION: This survey allows further perspective in studying the various factors that affect entrepreneurial intention. Indirectly, participating in this study can benefit the participants: The conclusion of this study paves the way for future advancements in the academe, should the participant have intentions to further their education post-graduate; If the interviewee is or an aspiring entrepreneur, this study may also help government agencies improve their current or future programs that are intended to help such categories; Moreover, this study allows the participant the opportunity to be heard and to serve as one of the representatives of business graduates that are navigating and hoping to improve their careers in Metro Manila. Respondents who accomplish valid survey entries will be entitled to a chance to join the raffle draw, with five (5) respondents winning PHP 300 worth of gift check or cash, each. Contact information is necessary to join the raffle draw but rest assured that the researcher will properly discard such information once the raffle draw is concluded.

CONTACT INFORMATION: Should you have questions or concerns regarding the research and/or survey questions, you may send an e-mail to danielle.fredeluces.gs@ust.edu.ph or contact the researcher at 0919-006-1170.