The influence of founders’ membership status on transgenerational succession intention in family business: Evidence from China

In this study, we examine the impact of the membership status of the founders of family firms on transgenerational succession intention in a Chinese context. Based on data concerning 1983 family firms in China, we find that certain forms of organizational membership on the part of founders (i.e., party, political or business membership) are positively associated with succession intention. In addition, we consider two kinds of moderating effect: family control and institutional environment. Family control weakens the relationship between social identity and succession intention; however, institutional environment strengthens this relationship. These results are robust to a variety of sensitivity tests. The study extends our understanding of how and why family firms’ succession behavior varies as a result of individuals’ sociological traits, particularly in the context of Chinese family firms, and has important implications for the task of sustainable family firm development.