Title

The family point of view, family social capital, and firm performance: An exploratory test

Department/School

Entrepreneurship; Center for Family Business

Date of this version

2009

Document Type

Article

Keywords

ethics, social capital, dialogue, collaboration, morality, family enterprise

Abstract

Based on the social capital, conflict, and ethics literatures, this study introduces a new concept, the family point of view, and provides theoretical arguments resulting in the following hypotheses: (a) The family point of view emerges from collaborative dialogue, which helps develop agreement to ethical norms; (b) the presence of ethical norms further helps cultivate family social capital; and (c) as a resource in a family business, family social capital is positively related to family firm performance. Using structural equation modeling, an exploratory test of 405 small family firms found support for all three hypotheses. The findings indicate a fully mediated relationship among collaborative dialogue, ethical norms, family social capital, and firm performance. The study not only highlights the importance of moral infrastructure in family firms but also helps clarify components of family social capital.

Volume

22

Issue

3

Published in

Family Business Review

Citation/Other Information

22 (3) 239-253

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