The Influence of Family Commitment on Corporate Entrepreneurship: Exploring the Mediating Role of a Firm's Long-Term Orientation

Abstract

Prior research generate conflicting findings regarding the relationship between family influence and corporate entrepreneurship. This study reconciles these inconsistent findings and argues that family commitment—the essence of family influence —plays an instrumental role in corporate entrepreneurship. From the dominant coalition perspective, we theorize that family commitment facilitates corporate entrepreneurship by enhancing the firm’s long-term orientation (LTO). An empirical analysis of 956 family firms from China supports our hypotheses. This study provides new insights into the relationship between family influence and corporate entrepreneurship and highlights the LTO as the underlying mechanism of family influence.

Keywords: family commitment, long-term orientation, dominant coalition, corporate entrepreneurship, family businesses