Abstract:
Student innovative capability in Institutions of Higher Education is of major interest in
most economies. This has ignited the presumption that innovativeness is anchored on
Entrepreneurial Pedagogy. However, there is limited understanding on the interactive
effect of incubator use on the relationship between entrepreneurial pedagogical
approaches and student innovative capability in higher education. This study was
designed to examine the moderating effect of incubator use on the relationship between
entrepreneurial pedagogy and student innovative capability in institutions of higher
education in Kenya. A post-positivist philosophy was the basis upon which the study
was anchored. The specific objectives of the study were to establish whether problem
based learning, competence based learning, direct learning and case study based
learning approaches enhanced student innovative capability. The study was guided by
the Social cognitive theory, Schumpeter’s theory of Entrepreneurship economics and
the componential theory of creativity. An explanatory research design was employed.
This study targeted 1545 fourth year finalists taking entrepreneurship as their primary
discipline in the sampled institutions of higher education in Kenya. In selecting a
sample of 380 respondents, proportionate stratified sampling and simple random
sampling was employed.. Questionnaires were the primary data collection instruments
in the study. The reliability of the device was tested using Cronbach Alpha while factor
analysis was used to validate the tool. Pearson’s pair wise correlation coefficient was
used to determine the relationship between the independent and the dependent
variables. Results were presented using descriptive and inferential analytical
techniques. Standard multiple regression and moderated multiple regression analysis
were used to test the hypotheses. The results showed that problem-based (β =
0.187, p < 0.05), case study (β = 0.318, p < 0.05), and direct learning (β =
0.297, p < 0.05) significantly affected student innovative capability. Incubator use
moderated the relationship between problem-based learning (β = 0.242, p = 0.05),
competence-based learning (β = 0.218, p = 0.05) and case study (β = 0.268, p =
0.05) on student innovative capability. The outcome of the study provides valuable
information to institutions of higher education as it creates new insights on the
relationship between entrepreneurial pedagogy and student innovative capability.The
findings indicated that problem based, direct and case study learning had a significant
effect on student innovative capability. It was further revealed that incubator use has a
significant moderating effect on the relationship between entrepreneurial pedagogy and
student innovative capability when three predictor variables were measured. From the
findings conclusion was drawn that entrepreneurial pedagogy approaches are closely
associated with student innovative capability and that incubator use moderates the
relationship between the two.The findings that case study learning approach accounted
for the highest significance variance on student innovative capability and that at a
higher incubator use the pedagogical approaches had a higher effect on student
innovative capability presents major contributions of this study as it extends both
Schumpeter’s theory of Entrepreneurship,Social cognitive theory and componential
theory of creativity. Therefore, the study recommended that institutions of higher
education, should adopt policies that take into account, case study, problem based,
direct and competence based learning approaches to enhance innovative capability of
students.