Commitment Helps: The Positive Effects of Long-Term Orientation and Family Ownership on Firms’ International Expansion

Abstract This research examines how commitment, long-term orientation, and distinctive family business traits resulting from family ownership affect internationalization by studying two unique and long-lasting firms with family and non-family ownership structures. Drawing upon arguments from international business studies and family business research, we have identified various entrepreneurial motivations and derived a framework that expands our knowledge on how commitment, long-term orientation and specific differences between family and non-family firms impact their international expansion. Our results indicate that family firms generate social capital, experience, and knowledge in an international context to sustain and maximize their advantages better than non-family firms.