"You Don't have to Be Superwoman!": Navigating Professional and Chronic Illness Identities in the Family Business

Abstract

Under the best of circumstances, how family members communicatively negotiate the intersections of work and home life is fraught with tension. Running a family business, or being one of the 5.5 million American enterprises where multiple family members participate or have controlling interests, complicates matters further. Family businesses create unique communication dynamics that blend the deeply personal work of maintaining relationships with the depersonalized tasks required for organizational success. Yet, such configurations can be disrupted by internal and external stressors, as well as other variables that challenge the organization’s stability. This fictionalized case study explores how the members of a small, family-run business grapple with the uncertainty presented by a leader’s chronic health condition. The case highlights the intersections of family, organizational, and health communication issues, especially related to understanding the business as a system, managing professional identity, dealing with the stigma surrounding chronic illness, setting and maintaining privacy boundaries, and providing and receiving social support.