Owner-manager emotions and strategic responses of small family businesses to the COVID-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT

COVID-19 pandemic, a consensus crisis that has had a profound effect on societies and economies globally, compelled family businesses to respond strategically in order to remain afloat. We examine the role of their owner-managers’ emotions in the strategic response to the COVID-19 pandemic, drawing on 38 in-depth interviews with owner-managers of small family businesses in Cyprus. Our findings reveal that owner-managers have experienced mainly negative emotions during the pandemic, including higher levels of stress, insecurity, fear, and doubt. By reflecting on these emotions, owner-managers can activate affective mechanisms and apply a stewardship logic to respond strategically. We contribute to the family business literature by conceptualizing key processes at the intersection between owner-manager emotions and strategic responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. By focusing on individual (that is, owner-manager) emotional processes and stewardship attitudes, our study provides a microfoundational explanation of strategic responses during external crises and offers both theoretical and practical implications.

KEYWORDS:

• Family business
• emotions
• strategic response
• stewardship
• owner-manager

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.