Title: Gender diversity and father-daughter relationships: understanding the role of paternalistic leadership in family firm succession

Authors: Mariavittoria Cicellin; Donata Mussolino; Riccardo Viganò

Addresses: Department of Economics, Management, Institutions, University of Naples Federico II, C.U. Monte Sant'Angelo, Via Cinthia – Naples, Italy ' Department of Economics, Management, Institutions, University of Naples Federico II, C.U. Monte Sant'Angelo, Via Cinthia – Naples, Italy ' Department of Economics, Management, Institutions, University of Naples Federico II, C.U. Monte Sant'Angelo, Via Cinthia – Naples, Italy

Abstract: This article examines the impact of paternalistic leadership on the gender diversity of family firm succession. To date, few studies have focused on the role of gender in the succession process, or on analysing the transfer of power to the male/female successor. The aim of this article is therefore to understand the impact of the predecessor's paternalistic leadership style on the success of the succession process and how gender-related issues affect this. In particular, we focus on the father-daughter relationship. Using the concept of paternalism, we formulate three main propositions and propose a conceptual model that considers different types of paternalistic leadership styles as factors that increase or decrease the likelihood of success of the succession, according to the gender of the successor. Finally, we propose some future paths for the academic debate.

Keywords: gender diversity; paternalistic leadership; family firm succession; father-daughter relationship; family businesses; power transfer; family firms; leadership styles.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBGE.2015.068693

International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, 2015 Vol.10 No.1, pp.97 - 118

Received: 11 Feb 2014
Accepted: 06 Feb 2015
Published online: 08 Apr 2015 *

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