Toward a Theory of Familiness: A Social Capital Perspective

Abstract

In the search for ways in which the family firm context is unique to organizational science, the construct of "familiness" has been identified and defined as resources and capabilities that are unique to the family's involvement and interactions in the business. While identification and isolation of a construct unique to family firms is both groundbreaking and important for family firm research, it is also important that the development of the construct continues to be examined from complementing theoretical viewpoints. As such, we set out to review the development of the familiness construct and identify its dimensions. We also explore the nomological relationships of the construct based on a social capital theory perspective and offer a theory of familiness.

Kinship and business: how entrepreneurial households facilitate business growth

“…Family businesses are constructed on the basis on the aspirations and capabilities of family members, which persistently influence decisions about strategy, operations and structure (Chrisman, Chua and Steier, 2005). While familiness encompasses the intersection of family and business (Pearson, et al, 2008), it is originally a firm-level construct (Habbershon and Williams, 1999). Taking a household perspective adds to this by focusing not only on the single family business, but on all business activities controlled by the household taking into account that one business strategy of the household can be to diversify its business activities.…”

“…Within the family business literature, the concept of familiness has been introduced to describe the resources and capabilities resulting from family involvement and interactions in the business (Habbershon and Williams, 1999;Pearson, Carr and Shaw, 2008). Family businesses are constructed on the basis on the aspirations and capabilities of family members, which persistently influence decisions about strategy, operations and structure (Chrisman, Chua and Steier, 2005).…”

A power perspective on knowledge transfer in internal succession of small family businesses

“…In terms of knowledge transfer it is essential to preserve familiness throughout the succession process for two reasons. Firstly, familiness implies the close identification of family members with each other and the business, leading to a higher willingness to share knowledge and to greater individual contributions to the collective (Pearson et al, 2008). Secondly, the strong ties that result from familiness are a prerequisite for the transfer of tacit knowledge to the next generation of family members (Lee, Lim, and Lim 2003).…”

“…Habbershon (2006, 990) refers to these interactions as the "familiness" of the business. The construct of familiness is rooted in the resource-based view of the business and presents a strategic competitive advantage of family businesses with regard to generating firm wealth and managing the firm compared to non-family businesses (Cabrera-Suárez, Saá-Pérez, and García-Almeida, 2001;Pearson, Carr, and Shaw, 2008).…”

“…Familiness refers to the involvement of the family and the closeness of individuals in the social system (Habbershon, 2006;Pearson et al, 2008;Steier, 2001) and influences the small family firm's connectedness and in turn the knowledge transfer behavior between its organizational members. Tagiuri and Davis (1996) summarize the unique alignment of overlapping memberships of family members.…”