Performance in family firm: Influences of socioemotional wealth and managerial capabilities

Despite an extensive literature on the role of managerial capabilities in enhancing firm performance, relationships between socioemotional wealth, managerial capabilities, and performance in a family business context have not been investigated. This study relates FIBER dimensions (five characteristics of family firms commonly used in studies of family businesses) to socioemotional wealth, managerial capabilities, and firm performance, and empirically tests a mediated model using a sample of 150 small and medium-sized family businesses from the United Arab Emirates. The results illustrate that managerial capabilities mediate the relationships between three FIBER dimensions (identification of family members with the firm, binding social ties, and emotional attachment of family members) and performance.