An Overview of the Field of Family Business Studies: Current Status and Directions for the Future

Abstract

In an attempt to evaluate and to summarize the literature on family firm studies, a rigorous review of 217 peer-reviewed articles was conducted which organizes the literature according to various levels of analysis, including individual, interpersonal/group, organizational, and societal.Following a review of many attempts to define the family firm, the issues surrounding attempts to distinguish the study of family firms from related fields of study are outlined.A key distinguishing feature of the field involves the intertwining and reciprocal relationships between the family and business systems.Having presented a framework for understanding firm performance along business and family harmony dimensions, strategies are suggested for expediting our collective understanding of family firms.These strategies include the careful organization of conceptual thoughts and the meticulous construction of effective studies.(SAA)

Keywords: Ownership structures, Succession, Conflict management, Firm performance, Founders, Family firms, Agency theory, Family-work relations, Female employees