Perceptions of Family-Owned Firms: The Impact of Gender and Educational Level

The prevalence of family-owned firms in the United States suggests that these types of firms offer substantial career opportunities for university students. Family businesses are often cited as providing several advantages over nonfamily-owned firms, which would seem to make employment opportunities in such firms very attractive. Some of these advantages include employee and employer loyalty, increased trust and security, the perception that family firms offer higher quality products and are in business for the long-term, and strong respect for tradition (Brokaw 1992, Prokesch 1986). Still, family firms may have difficulty recruiting qualified employees, particularly those interested in managerial positions. Family members may be reluctant to join their own family's firm for several reasons. Some resent the pressure to join or believe that working with family members will cause unnecessary stress or competition. Some may simply have different occupational interests. The general image of family firms may be particularly important in the recruitment of nonfamily members. Successful family-owned firms will most likely experience a point in time when there are not enough family members available to fill all key positions. Highly qualified nonfamily members may be reluctant to accept a job in a family firm because they are not members of the controlling family and perceive limited career opportunities. Concerns over how decisions will be made, the qualifications of co-workers, high turnover among non-family employees, resistance to change, and fairness of compensation and work-load may deter individuals from seriously considering the family business option (Levinson 1987; Rosenblatt, de Mik, Anderson, and Johnson 1985). The purpose of this study is to gain a better understanding of student perceptions of family-owned firms. The perceptions of university students are critical for two reasons. First, the completion of a degree is generally viewed as a milestone at which individuals consider or reconsider career alternatives and options (Veiga 1983). Second, as family firms rely more and more on professional managers, colleges and universities will be a major source for recruitment (Lansberg 1983). Because there is limited previous research in this area, the study was exploratory in nature. More specifically, the following research questions were addressed: 1. What are the general attitudes of university students toward family-owned firms? 2. Do perceptions of family-owned firms vary among men and women and graduate and undergraduate students? BACKGROUND Previous research on attitudes concerning family-owned firms has identified the mixed reactions of family business employees (Rosenblatt et al. 1985), professional managers (Guzzo 1991), and daughters considering careers in a family business (Dumas 1992). Birley (1986) studied university students with ties to family-owned firms, focusing on their intentions and emotions about working for the family firm after graduation. However, little additional empirical evidence exists concerning the perceptions that individuals (especially those who do not already have ties to a family-owned firm) hold of family-owned fires. Although several factors are likely to influence perceptions of family-owned firms, previous research suggests that two variables in particular, gender and educational level, strongly influence work-related attitudes. Evidence indicates that the work values of males and females differ in several respects, and that these differences impact career choices (Beutell and Brenner 1986; Brenner, Pringle, and Greenhaus 1991; Olson and Currie 1992). Bigoness (1988), for example, found that professional growth opportunities were more important to female M.B.A. candidates, while salary was more important to male candidates. Konrad and Langton (1991) found that having convenient hours, opportunities for promotion, sufficient resources for completing the job, and a secure and pleasant work environment were more important to men than to women. …