Time for a group hug? Toward a theory of shared emotional leadership in and of family business

Abstract

Despite clear evidence that emotions, both individual- and group-level, matter in shaping family business processes and outcomes, there is a dearth of research on the importance of shared leadership of emotions, especially in the context of family business. Consequently, we seek to expand shared leadership theory to incorporate various aspects of emotions in the family business milieu. We introduce a generalized process model of shared leadership in family firms, then provide a brief overview of emotions. Next, operating within the larger theoretical domain of group emotion, we introduce and work toward developing a theory of shared emotional leadership in and of family business, including representative antecedents and outcomes. We subsequently lay out a research agenda to stimulate future theoretical and empirical work in the general ken.