Work–Family Issues in Family Business

This chapter discusses work–family issues in family business, a particular type of work arrangement not commonly studied in the traditional work–family literature. Specifically, unlike in nonfamily business settings, family influence permeates the organization, including within employee, management, and ownership realms. Another characteristic worthy of study is that family firms have work–family conflict among family owner employees as well as typical nonowner employees often leading to heightened emotions as well as more relaxed work–family interface policies. The purpose of this chapter is to describe the particularities of family businesses with regard to both positive and negative work–family and family–work conflicts, explain some of the underlying dynamics, and point out potential avenues for future studies that might be of interest to work–family and family business researchers.