This study evaluates how cultural dimensions influence the determinants of social entrepreneurial intentions. The authors develop a survey instrument and analyse the determinants of the social entrepreneurial intentions of 236 individuals from China and the USA through factor analysis and structural equation modelling. They find that, when forming their social entrepreneurial intentions, those in China are influenced more by subjective norms and less by behavioural attitudes than those in the USA. The results thus suggest that the concept of social entrepreneurship is not uniform across the two cultures and that individuals are influenced by their culture when forming their social entrepreneurial intentions.