Family small businesses: definition, 'essence' and 'true' prevalence
by Calvin Wang
International Journal of Entrepreneurial Venturing (IJEV), Vol. 2, No. 3/4, 2010

Abstract: The rapid growth of the family business field is based on the purported prevalence and economic contributions of the family firm. However, such estimations are highly dependent on the question of what in fact constitutes a 'family business'. Unfortunately, a universally accepted definition remains an elusive outcome for the field. It has been suggested that any definition used should capture the 'essence' of the family business by focusing on the vision, intentions and behaviour of people who own, govern and/or manage the business. Since the majority of family businesses are small businesses, this paper applies the 'essence' criterion to empirically explore the 'true' prevalence of the family firm in a sample of small businesses. Findings and their implications for defining the family business are presented.

Online publication date: Thu, 25-Nov-2010

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