CFP: The Family and Enterprise: Unpacking the Connections (JMS)

[entrepreneurship-phd at lists.uni-due.de]

Call for Papers for a Special Issue of the Journal of Management Studies
The Family and Enterprise: Unpacking the Connections 
Deadline: 1 June 2007

Editors 
William Schulze, University of Utah 
Eric Gedajlovic, University of Connecticut 

It is taken as axiomatic in economic theory that competitive forces
extinguish inefficient forms of business enterprise, leaving only those
which are structurally the most fit with respect to prevailing market
conditions. Similarly, a fundamental tenet of organizational theory is
that one can explain the prevalence and distribution of an
organizational form with respect to the fit of that form to its context.
By these standards, the family enterprise has proven to be a remarkably
efficient and robust organizational form: They are not only the world's
most common form of economic organization, but, as La Porta et al (1999)
have noted, large family-controlled enterprises dominate the global
economic landscape. 

Despite their ubiquity and economic significance, there exists a
striking absence of research that explains the prominence, or even the
existence, of this unique economic institution. For this special edition
of the Journal of Management Studies, we seek theoretically grounded
research that examines the strategic and performance attributes of the
Family Business as a form of business enterprise. In doing so, these
papers should also shed light on the broader and more fundamental issue
of why this form of business enterprise exists, persists, and flourishes
across diverse institutional contexts and in competition with other
forms of business enterprise. To this end, we are especially interested
in papers that address the following research questions. 


* What theories explain the types of organizational structures, business
and corporate strategies and resource acquisition practices commonly
utilized by family businesses? 
* How does the coupling of ownership and control in the hands of family
members influence a firm's strategic objectives and behavior? 
* What explains the ability of family businesses to survive and thrive
within and across diverse product markets and institutional contexts? 
* How does the reciprocal influence of family and business dynamics
affect a firm's ability to develop and sustain rent-producing
capabilities? 
* What are the competitive advantages and disadvantages of family
businesses relative to other forms of business enterprise? 

Submissions to the special issue should be sent electronically (in
Microsoft Word) to Professor Schulze ( William.Schulze at Utah.edu ) or to
Professor Gedajlovic at ( eg at gedajlovic.com ) before June 1, 2007. The
format of these papers should comply with Journal of Management Studies
Guidelines.