Impact of informal institutions on the prevalence, strategy, and performance of family firms: A meta-analysis

Family-controlled firms (FCFs)’ prevalence, strategies, and performance differ across countries. We explain these differences through the lens of informal institutions, suggesting that different countries have different levels of appreciation for family business. To capture this effect, we introduce...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Berrone, P. (Pascual)|||/items/be76ec99-dc65-4a36-85a8-11755044fa00, Duran, P. (Patricio)|||/items/2dbb3cd0-6292-4d11-a8ce-08c5264926ad, Gomez-Mejia, L.R. (Luis R.)|||/items/e151630b-7dcc-4711-a5db-10926826d09f, Heugens, P.M.A.R. (Pursey)|||/items/d78d2e13-ae2c-46ec-b11c-915ff83a398a, Kostova, T. (Tatiana)|||/items/713ca241-3623-4494-a814-4cbb42fb1477, Essen, M. (Marc) van|||/items/4ddf70ab-154d-4559-a3bf-477a302b46a9
Format: article
Publication Date:2020
Country:España
Institution:Universidad de Navarra
Repository:Dadun. Depósito Académico Digital de la Universidad de Navarra
Language:English
OAI Identifier:oai:dadun.unav.edu:10171/111696
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10171/111696
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Family-controlled firms
Family firm prevalence
Firm performance
Informal institutions
Meta-analysis
Strategic decisions
Description
Summary:Family-controlled firms (FCFs)’ prevalence, strategies, and performance differ across countries. We explain these differences through the lens of informal institutions, suggesting that different countries have different levels of appreciation for family business. To capture this effect, we introduce the construct of family business legitimacy (FBL) and an associated index (FBLI). We empirically measure FBLI scores for 83 countries spanning both developed and emerging economies. By combining meta-analytic and archival data, we show that FCFs prevail, follow unique strategies, and outperform non-FCFs in countries with high FBLI scores. As a new contingency variable, FBL advances the literature on the informal institutional embeddedness of organizations and family business.