Perceptions of accountability in family business: Using accountability theory to understand differences between family and nonfamily executives

• We widen the scope from which to consider corporate governance in family business.
• Accountability theory provides lens to view the complex nexus of governance relationships.
• Three tightly coupled elements create the linkages which make perceptions of accountability salient.
• We explore possible moderators to the family status–accountability relationship.

Family business success rests on implementing a governance system that recognizes a complex nexus of social relationships. While scholars have used existing frameworks such as agency theory to explore the effect of financial incentives on agent behavior and performance, they have not integrated perspectives from psychology and sociology in a way that fully addresses the challenges of effective family business governance. Our research advances current knowledge of governance in family business by examining the implications of accountability theory to explore differences in the perceptions of accountability between family and nonfamily executives as a result of family firm monitoring. We examine the elements and linkages that form the basis of accountability in the context of firm characteristics uniquely common to family business and that are influential in the development of perceptions between executives of contrasting family status. Potential contingencies to the family status–accountability relationship is also considered, as are the implications of effective monitoring for family firm performance.