I libri di Ca’ Foscari

Il pensiero Zappiano come lente di lettura del family business

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Abstract

This chapter applies Gino Zappa’s institutional thought to family business research. Zappa’s view of the firm as an autonomous, unitary institution oriented toward long-term continuity offers a powerful lens for interpreting how economic, social, and relational dimensions intertwine in family firms. The chapter reframes tensions between family and business logics as problems of systemic economic equilibrium rather than irreconcilable opposites. It concludes by outlining future research directions that link Zappa’s framework to firm continuity and sustainability, arguing that family firms' capacity to integrate economic and socioemotional goals positions them as enduring institutions capable of generating value not only for owners but also for the wider communities and territories they inhabit.


open access

Language: it

Keywords Intergenerational succession • Corporate governance • Family business • Socioemotional wealth • Long-term orientation

Copyright © 2026 Carlotta Benedetti, Cinzia Colapinto, Michele Pinelli. This is an open-access work distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction is permitted, provided that the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. The license allows for commercial use. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

Permalink http://doi.org/10.30687/979-12-5742-081-9/004


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