Factors Affecting Students’ Innovative Behavior in the Faculty of Agriculture in Sari

Given the policies adopted by the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology to make the universities and students entrepreneurs, innovative behavior in students can help the development of academic environment and, at the same time, it can be effective in motivating entrepreneurship amongst the students and lay the ground for their employment. In this respect, various factors can influence students’ innovative behavior. This study aims to explore the factors underpinning students’ innovative behavior in the Faculty of Agriculture in Sari, Iran. The statistical population was composed of 433 students, out of which 206 students were selected through simple randomization on the basis of Krejcie and Morgan table. Data were collected with a self-designed questionnaire whose face and content validity was confirmed by a panel of experts. Also, the average derived variance (0.830 < AVE < 0.923) and combined reliability (0.500 < CR < 0.620) showed that the research measurement model had convergent reliability and appropriate validity. Also, the research research structual model was found to have diagnostic validity since the average derived variance was greater than the average shared squared variance and maximum shared squared variance. Data were analyzed by multivariate method of structural equations modeling using partial least squares method with the Smart PLS software package. The results revealed that out of nine studied factors, four factors including organizational culture (β = 0.296 and ρ = 0.010), education (β = 0.330 and ρ = 0.001), motivation (β = 0.249 and ρ = 0.006) and personality