Development of a measure of the characteristics of family business

In Australia and, for that matter, globally, family business represents the most significant form of company ownership and is the largest employer group (Department of Industry, Science and Technology, 1995; Lank, 1995). Despite the significance of family business, few investigations have evaluated issues relating to the reliability and validity of measures used to collect data. This study is part of a larger evaluation that aims to develop a reliable and valid measure of family business. Findings from this research will help establish a reliable and valid measure of family businesses that may be used in other studies in this area.