Accounting information as a facilitator of inter-generational transfer in family businesses: The case of an Andalusian business family

Abstract

This article aims at contributing to the study of the factors conducive to a successful intergenerational transfer within a business family, understood as that which favors the longevity of the family firms. The literature has pointed out how such transmissions tend to generate tensions that can threaten the survival of the family firms and business family cohesion. We analyze how a long-lived business family made use of accounting information during a process of intergenerational transfer. The studied case evidences how the trust on accounting information was used to facilitate such process. We conclude that trust on accounting information contributed to the longevity of family firm and family cohesion. In other words, it guaranteed the preservation of its socio-emotional wealth.