Research on trade credit – a systematic review and bibliometric analysis
Qualitative Research in Financial Markets
ISSN: 1755-4179
Article publication date: 13 June 2020
Issue publication date: 24 October 2020
Abstract
Purpose
Trade credit (TC) is a financing provision by non-financing firms. The multi-disciplinary research field has sustained scholarly attention for long. Pursuant to the gap for a comprehensive summary of the literature confined to the areas of Finance and Economics, this study aims to provide quantitative and qualitative insights not fully captured or analysed in previous reviews.
Design/methodology/approach
Contextualized systematic literature review (SLR) and bibliometric techniques are used to map the thematic, intellectual and conceptual structures latent in 138 articles published in top journals.
Findings
The top authors, top journals and major themes are recognized using bibliometric techniques followed by an in-depth bibliographic-network-based-content-analysis. Five major clusters indicating the five research dimensions within the specialized field are identified and extensively reviewed. Empirical validation of key theories is discussed in the contents and a conceptual model is developed. Finally, the study has identified key research gaps to set the direction for future research.
Research limitations/implications
The scope of the literature selection is confined to the areas of finance and economics. Future studies could elaborate on a broader perspective.
Originality/value
The study contributes by offering a conceptual model latent in the literature on TC. It derives major research gaps to set the direction of future research. Also, the combination of SLR and bibliometrics is a methodological contribution in this research domain.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors express their sincere thanks to the editor of QRFM, Professor Bruce M. Burton, the anonymous reviewers, and Caroline Found for extending their timely support and suggestions to help improve the content of the article.
Citation
Pattnaik, D., Kumar, S. and Vashishtha, A. (2020), "Research on trade credit – a systematic review and bibliometric analysis", Qualitative Research in Financial Markets, Vol. 12 No. 4, pp. 367-390. https://doi.org/10.1108/QRFM-09-2019-0103
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited