The Double-Edged Sword Effect of Generative AI Adoption on Students’ Sustainable Entrepreneurship Intentions

Kong, Weiwei; Hu, Haiqing; Wang, Zhaoqun; Qiao, Jianqi; Liu, Jianjun

doi:10.3390/bs15121705

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The Double-Edged Sword Effect of Generative AI Adoption on Students’ Sustainable Entrepreneurship Intentions

by

Weiwei Kong

,

Haiqing Hu

^*,

Zhaoqun Wang

,

Jianqi Qiao

and

Jianjun Liu

School of Economics and Management, Xi’an University of Technology, Xi’an 710054, China

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Behav. Sci. 2025, 15(12), 1705; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15121705

Submission received: 18 September 2025 / Revised: 10 November 2025 / Accepted: 4 December 2025 / Published: 9 December 2025

(This article belongs to the Section Educational Psychology)

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Abstract

Grounded in regulatory focus theory, this study investigates the double-edged sword effect of generative AI adoption on sustainable entrepreneurial intentions and its underlying mechanisms. A questionnaire-based survey was conducted among 357 business students from public universities in China. The results reveal that generative AI adoption exerts a double-edged effect: it enhances sustainable entrepreneurial intentions by strengthening sustainable entrepreneurial self-efficacy through a promotion-focused pathway, while simultaneously undermining such intentions by heightening sustainable entrepreneurial fear of failure via a prevention-focused pathway. Moreover, artificial intelligence literacy moderates these relationships, amplifying the positive influence of generative AI adoption on entrepreneurial self-efficacy and attenuating its negative effect on fear of failure. This study enhances understanding of sustainable entrepreneurship amid the rise in generative AI, extends regulatory focus theory, and informs the development of AI-integrated sustainability education in academic institutions.

Keywords: generative AI adoption; sustainable entrepreneurial intentions; sustainable entrepreneurial self-efficacy; sustainable entrepreneurial fear of failure; artificial intelligence literacy

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MDPI and ACS Style

Kong, W.; Hu, H.; Wang, Z.; Qiao, J.; Liu, J. The Double-Edged Sword Effect of Generative AI Adoption on Students’ Sustainable Entrepreneurship Intentions. Behav. Sci. 2025, 15, 1705. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15121705

AMA Style

Kong W, Hu H, Wang Z, Qiao J, Liu J. The Double-Edged Sword Effect of Generative AI Adoption on Students’ Sustainable Entrepreneurship Intentions. Behavioral Sciences. 2025; 15(12):1705. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15121705

Chicago/Turabian Style

Kong, Weiwei, Haiqing Hu, Zhaoqun Wang, Jianqi Qiao, and Jianjun Liu. 2025. "The Double-Edged Sword Effect of Generative AI Adoption on Students’ Sustainable Entrepreneurship Intentions" Behavioral Sciences 15, no. 12: 1705. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15121705

APA Style

Kong, W., Hu, H., Wang, Z., Qiao, J., & Liu, J. (2025). The Double-Edged Sword Effect of Generative AI Adoption on Students’ Sustainable Entrepreneurship Intentions. Behavioral Sciences, 15(12), 1705. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15121705

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The Double-Edged Sword Effect of Generative AI Adoption on Students’ Sustainable Entrepreneurship Intentions

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