Abstract
The paper applies Pierre Bourdieu's theory of capital to explore how farming family businesses respond to critical changes by using different forms of capital. The paper tells the story of three cases from the United Kingdom (UK): case one lost the entire farm business in the 2001 Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) crisis; case two the family had to overcome the sudden death of the farmer; and in case three the farmer was diagnosed with a terminal illness. The results indicate that levels of economic capital are adversely affected, whilst social and symbolic capitals are important in assisting family members to cope and continue the business operations. The paper raises questions for future research and provides interesting findings for those involved with family business.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 485-497 |
Number of pages | 13 |
Journal | Journal of Family and Economic Issues |
Volume | 31 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Dec 2010 |
Keywords
- Adversities
- Capital usage
- Coping
- Family farm business
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Social Psychology
- Economics and Econometrics