Entrepreneurship in family firms: an updated bibliometric overview

Research on entrepreneurship in family firms has grown exponentially over the past two decades. Due to the various theoretical perspectives and contexts found here however, this body of research remains fragmented, with a unified understanding of the current state of knowledge and the opportunities for future research in the field continuing to lack. In this study, we address this gap by conducting an updated bibliometric analysis of the research on entrepreneurship in family firms. Here we integrate two different bibliometric methods to provide a more comprehensive picture of the field, unveiling its intellectual foundations and current research discourses and how these two are related. To do this, we first conduct a co-citation analysis clustering the intellectual foundations of the research on entrepreneurship in family firms. Second, a bibliographic coupling of recent publications from 2010 to 2021 provides a transparent structure of current research discourses. Third, analyzing which intellectual foundations are primarily cited in each current research stream unveils the dominant theoretical paradigms in the current state of research. Analyzing 570 published studies, we identified four intellectual foundations of entrepreneurship in family firms: socioemotional wealth (SEW), entrepreneurial orientation, family-embedded resources, and agency theory. The current research can be clustered into seven main discourses: entrepreneurial motivation, gender and success, entrepreneurial orientation, individual and firm-level characteristics, the family embedded network, family firm internationalization, and family heterogeneity. An integrative network diagram provides an overview of the research field’s development while also identifying the gaps to be addressed by future research.

The Entrepreneur's Multiple Identities Dynamic Interaction and Strategic Entrepreneurial Behavior: A Case Study Based on Grounded Theory

Family firms face many uncertainties in a dynamic entrepreneurial context. Previous studies have shown strategic entrepreneurship can help firms effectively cope with uncertainties. There are few studies on how family-firm entrepreneurs make strategic decisions and engage in strategic entrepreneurial behavior. This may prevent managers lacking the necessary action guidelines from effectively implementing entrepreneurial behavior. we aim to explore the micro-behavioral mechanisms of strategic entrepreneurship in family firms. A longitudinal single case study based on grounded theory was conducted to explore these issues. Results show that (i) the entrepreneur's identity will constantly evolve to adapt to the entrepreneurial context during the life cycle of the corporation; (ii) entrepreneurs influence strategic entrepreneurial activities through the dynamic evolution and interaction of their identities; (iii) different entrepreneurial emotional states affect the strategic entrepreneurial behavior mechanisms. As a result, dynamic interactions between entrepreneurial identities have a significant impact on emotional states such as entrepreneurial well-being, which may significantly affect the implementation pattern of strategic entrepreneurial behaviors and the sustainable development of the firm. This paper provides a novel theoretical perspective on the path and behavioral choices of strategic entrepreneurship in firms, and also provides action guidelines and theoretical references for family business managers to implement strategic entrepreneurial behavior.

Job-demand and family business resources in pandemic context: How they influence burnout and job satisfaction

This research aims to explore how work demands and resource variables affect the burnout and satisfaction of employees of family businesses in the context of the pandemic (COVID-19) and the moderation effect of fear of COVID-19 on this relationship. A sample of 214 Chilean family business employees is used for hypotheses testing. Results indicate that the demands and resources partially explain the burnout and satisfaction of employees of family firms during the pandemic. Employees' fear of COVID-19 moderates the relationship between resources-demands and burnout-job satisfaction in family firms. This work contributes to understanding how these organizations can manage adverse scenarios to survive and continue operations.

The interplay of entrepreneurial and non-entrepreneurial internationalization: an illustrative case of an Italian SME

This study describes SME internationalization as a process that combines entrepreneurial and non-entrepreneurial behaviour. We bring in insights from prior literature and use an illustrative case study of an Italian SME to demonstrate the interplay of entrepreneurial and non-entrepreneurial behaviour during the internationalization process. Our study shows that the combination of entrepreneurial and non-entrepreneurial internationalization cannot be fully explained with existing International Entrepreneurship literature or other internationalization theories, as they do not take into account the nonlinear nature of internationalization or explain why the process seems to reach a ‘glass ceiling’ beyond which it does not progress. The study concludes with a conceptual framework providing an alternative explanation. Based on our conceptual reasoning we propose that predominantly non-entrepreneurial internationalization can occur without developing a clearly defined internationalization strategy. Additionally, we argue that low commitment to internationalization prevents capability development and may lead to nonlinear internationalization. Furthermore, we suggest that family involvement may moderate a firm’s international entrepreneurial orientation, consequently leading to more non-entrepreneurial internationalization.

Effects of CEO Identity on Non-family Managers' Pay Dispersion in Family Firms: A Social Comparison Perspective

The fairness of compensation has been a prominent focus for non-family managers, and pay dispersion, which reflects compensation fairness, has attracted much attention from scholars. Based on social comparison theory, this study investigates the factors that affect the pay dispersion between CEO and non-family managers. In family firms, the role of CEO, which is central in corporate governance, can be filled by either a family or a non-family member. This study provides insights into how the identity of the CEO affects pay dispersion and investigates the moderating effects of CEO tenure and institutional environment. Using the data of Chinese listed family firms from 2009 to 2015, the results show that the presence of non-family CEOs could decrease the pay dispersion between CEO and non-family managers. Empirical evidence also supports that the negative relationship between CEO identity and pay dispersion weakens when CEO tenure increases and the institutional environment matures.

An Empirical Study From a Mixed Methods Approach

Family firms are a unique setting to study constructive conflict management due to the influence of family ties of the owning family imprinting a sense of common purpose and shared destiny, and high levels of trust. We study the relationship between shared vision and trust that intervene in the adoption of constructive conflict management. To achieve our purpose, we carried out a systematic indirect observation using a mixed methods approach. We used the narratives of 17 semi-structured interviews, audio-recorded and transcribed, of family and non-family managers or directors from five Spanish family firms in the siblings' partnership stage, combined with documentary data obtained from different sources. Intra- and inter-observer reliability were confirmed. Results show a dynamic relationship between shared vision and specific components of trust (benevolence and ability) at different levels of conflict management. We also provide evidence of specific processes of concurrence-seeking and open-mindedness in family and ownership forums accounting for the relevance of family governance in these type of organizations. Family firms are a sum of several subsystems which exhibit a particular resources configuration. This study sheds light on constructive conflict management in family firms opening interesting avenues for further research and offering practical implications to managers, owners, and advisors.