TY  - JOUR
AB  - Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to evaluate whether there is significant agreement on what constitutes the essential elements for building a general theory of the marketing system. Design/methodology/approach– The method is an historical review of the various concepts, elements, sub-theories, axioms, components, explananda and ingredients proposed by marketing scholars over the past half century who contributed to the development of a general theory of the marketing system. Findings– The main finding is that despite the diversity of terms and concepts found in the marketing literature, there is considerable agreement on the essential elements necessary to build a general theory. Originality/value– The value of this work is in assembling and organizing the various concepts, elements, sub-theories, axioms, components, explananda and ingredients of a general theory. Scholars are encouraged to examine the pieces and re-join the quest to construct and empirically test a general theory of the marketing system.
VL  - 6
IS  - 4
SN  - 1755-750X
DO  - 10.1108/JHRM-07-2013-0041
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1108/JHRM-07-2013-0041
AU  - Shaw Eric
PY  - 2014
Y1  - 2014/01/01
TI  - The quest for a general theory of the marketing system
T2  - Journal of Historical Research in Marketing
PB  - Emerald Group Publishing Limited
SP  - 523
EP  - 537
Y2  - 2024/04/19
ER  -