Family Firm Values Explaining Family Firm Heterogeneity

Family firm heterogeneity results in reduced predictability of firm behavior as well as inconsistent results regarding research on family firm behavior. We argue that family firm heterogeneity is based, among other factors, on values heterogeneity. In order to lay the ground for future research, we develop a taxonomy of family firms based on values. Using values theory, we identify six value categories, resulting in five family firm types with five distinct value profiles. Second, we posit family firm values profiles are distinct to the group of family firms as nonfamily firms do not display similar value profiles