Which Factors Affect Landless Peasants’ Intention for Entrepreneurship? A Case Study in the South of the Yangtze River Delta, China

Landless peasants have been a great concern for both the government and academics in China. Entrepreneurship is promoted as one of the most important approaches to achieving civilization and urbanization. However, few studies have systematically examined the influencing factors of landless peasants’ entrepreneurial intention (EI). This research gap presents barriers for making effective policies to promote entrepreneurship among landless peasants. This study aims to examine the critical factors influencing the EI of landless peasants and their interrelationships. The critical factors of landless peasants’ EI are identified using logistic regression analysis. The logical and structural relationships among critical factors are mined by interpretative structural modeling. A chain of factors with an interrelated and clear hierarchy is built to clarify the explanatory structure of landless peasants’ EI. The results show that the EI of landless peasants is significantly influenced by five factors: gender, achievement motivation, innovation orientation, land expropriation scenario, and entrepreneurial experience. Entrepreneurial experience is a direct surface factor; innovation orientation is an indirect intermediate layer factor; and gender, achievement motivation, and land expropriation scenario are deeply rooted factors. The results provide a good reference for formulating effective entrepreneurship policies to address landless peasants’ employment and sustainable livelihoods.