Structural crisis? Regional culture and resilience in family business-dominated regions in Sweden

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to understand the interdependence between regional culture and resilience in family business-dominated regions.

Design/methodology/approach

The study is based on a literature review and helps to fill the knowledge gap regarding regional culture and resilience in family business-dominated contexts.

Findings

The authors highlight similarities and differences between two regions of Sweden with distinct regional cultures that support resilience. A number of norms that are significant in generating resilient regions are identified. One key finding is that the regional culture developed during the proto-industrial era, in connection with home production, still affects and contributes to resilience in these family business-dominated regions.

Research limitations/implications

The study is based on two case studies, so no generalizable conclusions can be drawn.

Practical implications

For policy makers, this study shows that structural crises can be overcome with a strong regional culture, as it can foster resilience. However, regional culture is hard to implement by political decisions. For owners and managers of organizations, this study suggests that it is essential to consider regional culture as an important factor for the organization.

Originality/value

This study draws on a comparison of two regions in Sweden with explicit regional cultures.

Citation

Ljungkvist, T. and Boers, B. (2016), "Structural crisis? Regional culture and resilience in family business-dominated regions in Sweden", Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy, Vol. 10 No. 4, pp. 425-446. https://doi.org/10.1108/JEC-05-2015-0030