Understanding the multiple facets of risk in family firms: A review of the literature and a framework for future research

The literature on risk in family firms has grown rapidly in recent decades, and an analysis of its evolution and current state is therefore both timely and useful. Accordingly, we review 291 articles published between 1992 and 2022 and combine bibliometric and qualitative analyses to map and make sense of the field. In particular, we systematize the growing literature on risk in family firms by identifying its conceptual structure, theoretical roots, and thematic areas. In addition, we derive factors of heterogeneity − perspective of analysis, aspects of risk, role of the family − within risk in family firms’ studies. In doing so, we take stock of the literature, shed light on the multiple facets of risk, develop an interpretative framework of current knowledge, and offer a guide to advance this flourishing research field.