Research gaps in family owned businesses: A conceptual link between socio-emotional wealth, family commitment and firm performance

Family business researchers acknowledge that firms controlled by families are primarily driven by a set of goals that are family-centric and non-economic in nature, known as socio-emotional wealth. However, the family business literature is yet to reach a nuanced understanding of how different dimensions of such goals drive family commitment to the firm and consequently firm performance. This paper builds on the premise that family firms vary in their goals and aspirations and argues that the willingness of family firm owners to commit resources, time and effort towards the firm’s business goals depend on which of the dimensions of socio-emotional wealth are more emphasised by the key decision makers in the firm. We explore the gaps in the behavioural stream of family business literature, and propose a conceptual link between the dimensions of socio-emotional wealth, family commitment and firm performance and propose a set of considerations for future empirical studies.