Abstract A case study approach was used to better understand the characteristics of large family forest landowners in the U.S. South. In particular, this study examines these landowners' business structures, extent of ownership, and management objectives. Large family forest landowners were defined as families or family businesses owning large tracts of forested land. Using the theoretical framework of the socioemotional wealth model, we identified and interviewed 36 family forest landowners with large landholdings (a total of 1.37 million acres and an average of 37,000 acres per owner), recorded and transcribed discussions, and analyzed the results using a grounded theory approach. Findings suggested that in addition to financial benefits, the landowners derived socioemotional benefits from the land, such as a sense of identity associated with the land and its history and the value of passing it on to future generations. These nonfinancial benefits coupled with large landholdings could lead to the adoption of business structures to maintain the land as a consolidated unit. The results of this study show that business structures of large family forest landowners may indicate motivations for managing the land and intentions for long-term ownership of the land.

中文翻译：

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大型家庭林地所有者的动机、业务结构和管理意图：美国南部的案例研究

摘要 案例研究方法用于更好地了解美国南部大型家庭林地所有者的特征。本研究特别考察了这些土地所有者的业务结构、所有权范围和管理目标。大型家庭林地所有者被定义为拥有大片林地的家庭或家族企业。利用社会情感财富模型的理论框架，我们确定并采访了 36 位拥有大量土地的家庭林地所有者（总计 137 万英亩，平均每个所有者拥有 37,000 英亩），记录和转录讨论，并使用扎根的方法分析结果。理论方法。调查结果表明，除了经济利益之外，土地所有者还从土地中获得了社会情感利益，例如与土地及其历史相关的认同感以及将其传递给后代的价值。这些非财务利益加上大量土地持有，可能会导致采用商业结构将土地作为一个综合单位来维持。本研究的结果表明，大型家庭林地所有者的商业结构可能表明管理土地的动机和长期拥有土地的意图。