MINDSET: progetto di ricerca intervento per lo sviluppo della competenza “senso di iniziativa e imprenditorialità” nel territorio della Provincia di Taranto

The paper describes the research design, the path and the evaluation activities of the research-intervention proect called Mindset carried out in 2017 in the province of Taranto (Italy). The focus of the proect was to explore the cultural representations of the target group (students and local entrepreneurs) in relation to the key competence “sense of initiative” and “entrepreneurship”, aimed at defining a training model to support participants and to develop the territory. Mapping the cultural dimensions of this key competence means focusing on the relationship between the way in which we read/act/react social contexts and the practices of interaction with the same context. Exploring the system of representations that organizing their actions means interpreting their sense-making processes with reference to the development of competence “Sense of initiative and entrepreneurship”. Moreover, exploring their cultural representations can guide the planning of the next training activities thanks to the enhancement of the cultural pattern below the different representations and practices of the competence “sense of initiative and entrepreneurship”. It is therefore necessary to consider the evaluation criteria oriented to the European standards/benchmarks (Entrecomp) as cultural criteria that may be contextualized with reference to the different cultural meanings that define “competent” a person who perform “sense of initiative and entrepreneurship” compared to EntreComp framework.