Purpose

The purpose of this study was to understand how the family system plays a role in knowledge sharing (KS) within family firms. The authors argue that the family’s influence can occur through two routes. An external route in which the family affects the culture of the organization and through an internal route in which family leadership within the firm affects the practices and behaviors within the business.

Design/methodology/approach

Data for this project came from the survey responses of 93 Spanish family firms.

Findings

The findings expand previous understanding about KS in family firms by outlining the two routes through which the family can have positive effect on KS within family firms. Results show that family system characteristics (i.e. next-generation commitment, family trust and intergenerational relationships) affect KS through their impact on the participative culture of a family firm. Additionally, when a family has been in control of the business for more generations, they place higher importance on family legacy and continuity, which is likely to strengthen the relationship between participative culture and KS in family firms.

Originality/value

Given the important role that the family system plays within the family business, this paper explored how family characteristics can influence KS in family firms. The authors contribute to the literature by highlighting the importance that the owning family can have in creating an environment that can facilitate KS in family firms.

中文翻译：

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家族对家族企业知识共享的影响

目的

本研究的目的是了解家族系统如何在家​​族企业内的知识共享 (KS) 中发挥作用。作者认为，家庭的影响可以通过两条途径发生。家族影响组织文化的外部途径，以及公司内部的家族领导影响企业内部实践和行为的内部途径。

设计/方法/方法

该项目的数据来自 93 家西班牙家族企业的调查回复。

发现

研究结果通过概述家族可以对家族企业内的 KS 产生积极影响的两条途径，扩展了先前对家族企业中 KS 的理解。结果表明，家族系统特征（即下一代承诺、家族信任和代际关系）通过对家族企业参与文化的影响来影响KS。此外，当一个家族已经控制了更多代人的企业时，他们更加重视家族遗产和连续性，这可能会加强家族企业中参与性文化与 KS 之间的关系。

原创性/价值

鉴于家族制度在家族企业中发挥的重要作用，本文探讨了家族特征如何影响家族企业的KS。作者通过强调拥有家族在创造一个可以促进家族企业 KS 的环境中的重要性，为文献做出了贡献。