Exploring what makes family firms different: Discrete or overlapping constructs in the literature?

Alexandra Dawson and Donata Mussolino

Journal of Family Business Strategy, 2014, vol. 5, issue 2, 169-183

Abstract: The theory, research, and practice of family business have evolved significantly over the last quarter of a century. The field has experienced significant transformations; however, scholars are still debating what makes family businesses unique and distinct from nonfamily businesses. Three constructs have been proposed in the literature to address this issue: socioemotional wealth, the essence of family business, and familiness. Through a systematic review of the literature, we analyze these constructs by providing definitions, identifying antecedents, outcomes, and measurements, and by summarizing differences and similarities. We incorporate our key findings in a conceptual model to guide researchers in their future efforts.

Keywords: Literature review; Socioemotional wealth; Essence of family business; Familiness; Family involvement; Vision (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (18)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:fambus:v:5:y:2014:i:2:p:169-183

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DOI: 10.1016/j.jfbs.2013.11.004

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