Abstract

Family businesses often take the form of small and medium enterprises or entrepreneurial ventures, and account for a vast majority of the value created in the business world. Family businesses have peculiar characteristics that differentiate them from non-family firms, for example one of the main aspects is that family businesses are particularly prone to conflict, due to the interplay of family dynamics and business dynamics. Despite the relevance of conflict for family businesses, and the existence of a well established field of study in conflict management, it seems that the topic has not yet fully been investigated, nor systematised. This paper aims at offering a first solution to this problem by performing a bibliometric analysis of 106 studies that investigated conflict in family business. Three clusters emerge and are systematically reviewed to provide the key insight and systematisation of knowledge on conflict and family business. Research directions and practical implications are also discussed.