Has Religious Beliefs Any Effect On Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Of The Small Business Leaders?

Abstract

Religious faith of small business leaders by the propositions of the religious theorist has been identified as a decisive determining factor that must be considered in leading organizations through difficult situation such as the case of reorganization under Chapter 11 bankruptcy process. This study is an examination of the extent religious faith of small business leaders correlates with the outcome of the Chapter 11 bankruptcy process. To capture the objective of this study, the relationship between the independent variables of direct cost, management skills, leadership skills, Chapter 11 bankruptcy process and time, and religious faith, with the outcome of the Chapter 11 bankruptcy process was investigated. The empirical results revealed that the religious faith of small business leaders played a significant role in the outcome of the Chapter 11 bankruptcy process. However, the quality of relationship one has with a higher power and acts of practicing one’s faith was the aspect of religious faith that made a difference. Small business leaders who reported having a strong relationship with a higher power and who practiced the teachings of their faith experienced high level of success with the Chapter 11 bankruptcy outcome when compared to business leaders who did not report a strong relationship with a higher power.