Causal Effects of Family Business Social Crossover Reform on Institutional Accountability in Uganda: A Difference-in-Differences Design

While the literature acknowledges the unique governance challenges of family firms, particularly in developing economies, the specific mechanisms through which social crossover initiatives—programmes that integrate family and community welfare objectives into business operations—influence accountability structures remain undertheorised. The analysis proposes a difference-in-differences identification strategy that exploits the staggered adoption of such reforms across Ugandan family businesses, addressing the selection bias inherent in voluntary reform participation. The framework distinguishes between internal accountability (board oversight, transparent reporting to family shareholders) and external accountability (responsiveness to community stakeholders, regulatory compliance). The central proposition is that social crossover reform enhances external accountability but may, under certain conditions, weaken internal accountability by blurring the boundaries between family welfare and business performance.