The intellectual structure of sustainable business development studies

Viktoriya Kharchuk; Ihor Oleksiv; Roman Shulyar; Nestor Shpak

doi:10.15549/jeecar.v11i4.1652

Authors

Viktoriya Kharchuk Lviv Polytechnic National University, Ukraine https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4354-9549
Ihor Oleksiv University of London, Goldsmiths, United Kingdom; Lviv Polytechnic National University, Ukraine https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7387-6933
Roman Shulyar Lviv Polytechnic National University, Ukraine https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8065-7579
Nestor Shpak Lviv Polytechnic National University, Ukraine https://orcid.org/0009-0007-4471-7782

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15549/jeecar.v11i4.1652

Keywords:

sustainable business development, intellectual structure of research, bibliometric analysis, research domain

Abstract

This paper aims to examine the intellectual structure of sustainable business development studies and to gain an in-depth perspective on its future development. To achieve the research objectives, we applied methods of bibliometric analysis (WoS tools, co-citation analysis, co-word analysis, and bibliographic coupling) to the dataset extracted from the Web of Science. The main research domains of the researched field were distinguished based on the cluster interpretation. Specifically, both co-word analysis and bibliographic coupling demonstrated the overlap between the two research domains: "Sustainable Development and Entrepreneurship" and "Corporate Social Responsibility and Stakeholder Theory," while the "Sustainable Development: Theoretical Foundations of the Research" cluster obtained via bibliographic coupling partially converged with the "Sustainable Development and Entrepreneurship" cluster received from the co-word analysis. However, the clusters "Company Performance and Innovations" extracted from co-word analysis and "Competitive Analysis and Sustainable Development" obtained from bibliographic coupling did not coincide. Furthermore, we concluded that over the last 40 years, sustainable business development studies have gone through the process of structuring induced by global changes in business and the economy.

Author Biographies

Viktoriya Kharchuk, Lviv Polytechnic National University, Ukraine

Dr. Viktoriya Kharchuk is a professor and Deputy Head of International Relations Management and the International Business Department at Lviv Polytechnic National University. She teaches Financial Management and Sustainability-related subjects. She actively participates in international educational projects such as Erasmus+ Jean Monnet and Erasmus+ KA2 Capacity Building Projects in the field of Higher Education. Her research focuses on maintaining business sustainability in the Ukrainian business environment.

Ihor Oleksiv, University of London, Goldsmiths, United Kingdom; Lviv Polytechnic National University, Ukraine

Dr. Ihor Oleksiv is a professor of management and international business department at Lviv Polytechnic National University and a visiting researcher at the University of London, Goldsmiths. He teaches Strategic Management at both universities. His research interests include CSR, sustainability, bibliometric analysis, and text analysis.

Roman Shulyar, Lviv Polytechnic National University, Ukraine

Dr. Roman Shulyar is a Professor and Director of the Center for Quality Assurance in Education at Lviv Polytechnic National University. His main tasks are organizing student surveys and preparing for the accreditation of Educational Programs. Dr. Shulyar participates in the Jean Monnet and Erasmus + programs. His special fields are Quality in Business and Education and international business. He teaches Management of International Businesses, Econometrics, and Decision-Making courses.

Nestor Shpak, Lviv Polytechnic National University, Ukraine

Dr. Nestor Shpak is a professor of management and international business department at Lviv Polytechnic National University. He teaches Intellectual Property. His research focuses on various aspects of Ukrainian economic development.

References

Abhi Rafdhi, A., Soeryanto Soegoto, E., Neni Hayati, E., Saputra, H., Untsa Mega, R., & Ihsan Rifaldi, M. (2023). Economic growth and its influence on environment sustainability: A bibliometric analysis using VOSviewer application. Journal of Eastern European and Central Asian Research (JEECAR), 10(1), 125–134. https://doi.org/10.15549/jeecar.v10i1.1071 DOI: https://doi.org/10.15549/jeecar.v10i1.1071

Ahmad, I., Alni, R., Arni, S., & Mamduh M., H. (2023). Financial Literacy to Improve Sustainability: A Bibliometric Analysis. Studies in Business and Economics, 18(3), 24–43. https://doi.org/10.2478/sbe-2023-0043 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/sbe-2023-0043

Bota-Avram, C. (2023). Bibliometric analysis of sustainable business performance: Where are we going? A science map of the field. Economic Research-Ekonomska Istraživanja, 36(1), 2137–2176. https://doi.org/10.1080/1331677X.2022.2096094 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1331677X.2022.2096094

Boyack, K. W., & Klavans, R. (2010). Co‐citation analysis, bibliographic coupling, and direct citation: Which citation approach represents the research front most accurately? Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 61(12), 2389–2404. https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.21419 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.21419

Carroll, A. B. (1979). A Three-Dimensional Conceptual Model of Corporate Performance. The Academy of Management Review, 4(4), 497. https://doi.org/10.2307/257850 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/257850

Chabowski, B. R., Samiee, S., & Hult, G. T. M. (2013). A bibliometric analysis of the global branding literature and a research agenda. Journal of International Business Studies, 44(6), 622–634. https://doi.org/10.1057/jibs.2013.20 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/jibs.2013.20

Chen, C. C., Greene, P. G., & Crick, A. (1998). Does entrepreneurial self-efficacy distinguish entrepreneurs from managers? Journal of Business Venturing, 13(4), 295–316. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0883-9026(97)00029-3 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0883-9026(97)00029-3

Cullen, J. G. (2017). Educating Business Students About Sustainability: A Bibliometric Review of Current Trends and Research Needs. Journal of Business Ethics, 145(2), 429–439. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2838-3 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2838-3

D’Amato, D., Droste, N., Allen, B., Kettunen, M., Lähtinen, K., Korhonen, J., Leskinen, P., Matthies, B. D., & Toppinen, A. (2017). Green, circular, bio economy: A comparative analysis of sustainability avenues. Journal of Cleaner Production, 168, 716–734. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.09.053 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.09.053

Donthu, N., Kumar, S., Mukherjee, D., Pandey, N., & Lim, W. M. (2021). How to conduct a bibliometric analysis: An overview and guidelines. Journal of Business Research, 133, 285–296. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.04.070 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.04.070

Dyllick, T., & Hockerts, K. (2002). Beyond the business case for corporate sustainability. Business Strategy and the Environment, 11(2), 130–141. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.323 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.323

Eccles, R. G., Ioannou, I., & Serafeim, G. (2014). The Impact of Corporate Sustainability on Organizational Processes and Performance. Management Science, 60(11), 2835–2857. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2014.1984 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2014.1984

Elkington, J. (1994). Towards the Sustainable Corporation: Win-Win-Win Business Strategies for Sustainable Development. California Management Review, 36(2), 90–100. https://doi.org/10.2307/41165746 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/41165746

Elkington, J. (1997). Cannibals with forks: The triple bottom line of 21st century business. Capstone. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/tqem.3310080106

Franceschini, S., Faria, L. G. D., & Jurowetzki, R. (2016). Unveiling scientific communities about sustainability and innovation. A bibliometric journey around sustainable terms. Journal of Cleaner Production, 127, 72–83. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.03.142 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.03.142

Golicic, S. L., & Smith, C. D. (2013). A Meta‐Analysis of Environmentally Sustainable Supply Chain Management Practices and Firm Performance. Journal of Supply Chain Management, 49(2), 78–95. https://doi.org/10.1111/jscm.12006 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jscm.12006

Harrison, J. S., Bosse, D. A., & Phillips, R. A. (2010). Managing for stakeholders, stakeholder utility functions, and competitive advantage. Strategic Management Journal, 31(1), 58–74. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.801 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.801

Hassan, S.-U., Haddawy, P., & Zhu, J. (2014). A bibliometric study of the world’s research activity in sustainable development and its sub-areas using scientific literature. Scientometrics, 99(2), 549–579. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-013-1193-3 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-013-1193-3

Iwami, S., Ojala, A., Watanabe, C., & Neittaanmäki, P. (2020). A bibliometric approach to finding fields that co-evolved with information technology. Scientometrics, 122(1), 3–21. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-019-03284-9 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-019-03284-9

Jumansyah, R., Natasha Puspa Dewi, Eddy Soeryanto Soegoto, Senny Luckyardi, & Alshiqi, S. (2023). Modeling islamic marketing research using VOSviewer application: A bibliometric analysis. Journal of Eastern European and Central Asian Research (JEECAR), 10(1), 31–45. https://doi.org/10.15549/jeecar.v10i1.1090 DOI: https://doi.org/10.15549/jeecar.v10i1.1090

Kharchuk, V., & Oleksiv, I. (2023). The Intellectual Structure of Sustainable Leadership Studies: Bibliometric Analysis. In Z. Hu, Y. Wang, & M. He (Eds.), Advances in Intelligent Systems, Computer Science and Digital Economics IV (Vol. 158, pp. 430–442). Springer Nature Switzerland. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-24475-9_37 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-24475-9_37

Leite, L., Yagasaki, C., Van Aken, E., & Martins, R. (2012). Bibliometric analysis of literature on performance measurement systems and sustainability. 62nd IIE Annual Conference and Expo 2012. 62nd IIE Annual Conference and Expo 2012. https://www.scopus.com/record/display.uri?eid=2-s2.0-84900327512&origin=resultslist&sort=plf-f&src=s&sid=b34ad8b2795ce2f1cdb174ecd9717125&sot=b&sdt=b&s=TITLE-ABS-KEY%28%22Bibliometric+analysis+of+literature+on+performance+measurement+systems+and+sustainability.%22%29&sl=107&sessionSearchId=b34ad8b2795ce2f1cdb174ecd9717125&relpos=0

Linton, J. D., Klassen, R., & Jayaraman, V. (2007). Sustainable supply chains: An introduction. Journal of Operations Management, 25(6), 1075–1082. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jom.2007.01.012 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jom.2007.01.012

López, M. V., Garcia, A., & Rodriguez, L. (2007). Sustainable Development and Corporate Performance: A Study Based on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index. Journal of Business Ethics, 75(3), 285–300. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-006-9253-8 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-006-9253-8

Maditati, D. R., Munim, Z. H., Schramm, H.-J., & Kummer, S. (2018). A review of green supply chain management: From bibliometric analysis to a conceptual framework and future research directions. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 139, 150–162. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2018.08.004 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2018.08.004

Miller, D., Le Breton‐Miller, I., & Scholnick, B. (2008). Stewardship vs. Stagnation: An Empirical Comparison of Small Family and Non‐Family Businesses*. Journal of Management Studies, 45(1), 51–78. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6486.2007.00718.x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6486.2007.00718.x

Montiel, I. (2008). Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Sustainability: Separate Pasts, Common Futures. Organization & Environment, 21(3), 245–269. https://doi.org/10.1177/1086026608321329 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1086026608321329

Morgan, R. M., & Hunt, S. D. (1994). The Commitment-Trust Theory of Relationship Marketing. Journal of Marketing, 58(3), 20–38. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224299405800302 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/002224299405800302

Moya-Clemente, I., Ribes-Giner, G., & Chaves-Vargas, J. C. (2021). Sustainable entrepreneurship: An approach from bibliometric analysis. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 22(2), 297–319. https://doi.org/10.3846/jbem.2021.13934 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3846/jbem.2021.13934

Ogrean, C. (2023). Interplays Between Artificial Intelligence and Sustainability in Business / Management. A Bibliometric Analysis. Studies in Business and Economics, 18(2), 336–357. https://doi.org/10.2478/sbe-2023-0041 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/sbe-2023-0041

Parmar, B. L., Freeman, R. E., Harrison, J. S., Wicks, A. C., Purnell, L., & De Colle, S. (2010). Stakeholder Theory: The State of the Art. Academy of Management Annals, 4(1), 403–445. https://doi.org/10.5465/19416520.2010.495581 DOI: https://doi.org/10.5465/19416520.2010.495581

Peng, M. W., Wang, D. Y. L., & Jiang, Y. (2008). An institution-based view of international business strategy: A focus on emerging economies. Journal of International Business Studies, 39(5), 920–936. https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8400377 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8400377

Peteraf, M. A. (1993). The cornerstones of competitive advantage: A resource‐based view. Strategic Management Journal, 14(3), 179–191. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.4250140303 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.4250140303

Peters, N. J., Hofstetter, J. S., & Hoffmann, V. H. (2011). Institutional entrepreneurship capabilities for interorganizational sustainable supply chain strategies. The International Journal of Logistics Management, 22(1), 52–86. https://doi.org/10.1108/09574091111127552 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/09574091111127552

Rao, P., & Holt, D. (2005). Do green supply chains lead to competitiveness and economic performance? International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 25(9), 898–916. https://doi.org/10.1108/01443570510613956 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/01443570510613956

Shamir, R. (2008). The age of responsibilization: On market-embedded morality. Economy and Society, 37(1), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/03085140701760833 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/03085140701760833

Sharma, S., & Vredenburg, H. (1998). Proactive corporate environmental strategy and the development of competitively valuable organizational capabilities. Strategic Management Journal, 19(8), 729–753. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199808)19:8<729::AID-SMJ967>3.0.CO;2-4 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199808)19:8<729::AID-SMJ967>3.0.CO;2-4

Shpak, N., Seliuchenko, N., Kharchuk, V., Kosar, N., & Sroka, W. (2019). Evaluation of Product Competitiveness: A Case Study Analysis. Organizacija, 52(2), 107–125. https://doi.org/10.2478/orga-2019-0008 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/orga-2019-0008

Soeryanto Soegoto, E., Luckyardi, S., Neni Hayati, E., Abhi Rafdhi, A., & Okatafiani, D. (2022). Bibliometric analysis of green supply chain research using VOSviewer. Journal of Eastern European and Central Asian Research (JEECAR), 9(5), 851–864. https://doi.org/10.15549/jeecar.v9i5.1051 DOI: https://doi.org/10.15549/jeecar.v9i5.1051

Steurer, R., Langer, M. E., Konrad, A., & Martinuzzi, A. (2005). Corporations, Stakeholders and Sustainable Development I: A Theoretical Exploration of Business–Society Relations. Journal of Business Ethics, 61(3), 263–281. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-005-7054-0 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-005-7054-0

Thananusak, T. (2019). Science Mapping of the Knowledge Base on Sustainable Entrepreneurship, 1996–2019. Sustainability, 11(13), 3565. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11133565 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su11133565

Vorhies, D. W., & Morgan, N. A. (2005). Benchmarking Marketing Capabilities for Sustainable Competitive Advantage. Journal of Marketing, 69(1), 80–94. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.69.1.80.55505 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.69.1.80.55505

Wichaisri, S., & Sopadang, A. (2018). Trends and Future Directions in Sustainable Development. Sustainable Development, 26(1), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.1687 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.1687

World Commission on Environment and Development. (2009). Our common future (Reprinted). Oxford University Press.

Zemigala, M. (2019). Tendencies in research on sustainable development in management sciences. Journal of Cleaner Production, 218, 796–809. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.02.009 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.02.009

Zhu, J., & Hua, W. (2017). Visualizing the knowledge domain of sustainable development research between 1987 and 2015: A bibliometric analysis. Scientometrics, 110(2), 893–914. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-016-2187-8 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-016-2187-8

Zupic, I., & Čater, T. (2015). Bibliometric Methods in Management and Organization. Organizational Research Methods, 18(3), 429–472. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094428114562629 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1094428114562629