Engaging in a New Field: Business Owning Families’ Differential Approach to Impact Investing

Abstract

We develop a theoretical framework explaining why and how business owning families (BOF) engage in impact investing. Despite its exponential growth, the burgeoning field impact investing is still subject to competing interpretations and varying practices. Building on the framework proposed by Nason et al. (2019b), we argue that a BOF’s frame of reference (backward vs. forward looking and internally vs. externally oriented) constitutes a relevant heterogeneity that triggers a unique driver for engaging in impact investing and a distinct set of practices to do so.