This conceptual article explores the psychological processes that underlie the strategic decision-making of family firm CEOs, focusing on how their prioritization of socioemotional wealth (SEW) or financial wealth (FW) relates to strategic risk-taking. Drawing on regulatory focus theory, we propose the Situated Gamble Model (SGM), which posits that CEOs' regulatory focus – prevention-oriented or promotion-oriented – mediates the relationship between their SEW or FW priorities and their strategic decisions. We argue that CEOs emphasizing SEW are more likely to adopt a prevention focus, often linked to risk-averse strategies, while those prioritizing FW are inclined to adopt a promotion focus, associated with riskier strategies. Additionally, we explore how regulatory focus impacts strategic choices in different contexts, such as gain or loss domains, further explaining the paradoxical risk behaviours often observed among family firm CEOs. By uncovering how motivation and self-regulation shape strategic behaviour, this article provides new theoretical insights into the micro-foundations of decision-making in family firms and sets the stage for future empirical research.
Angelucci et al. (2025) studied this question.