Bibliometric citation analysis is an interesting way to study a field. It is more objective than a traditional literature review type analysis. Through citations we can see what papers were especially influential in the field. There is a, not outrageous, assumption. Namely that more influential papers are cited more. It is particularly appropriate for fields with a lot of literature. Brand relationships certainly have a lot of literature. This gives Marc Fetscherin and Daniel Heinrich plenty of papers to look at. They can then tabulate which were the most cited. The authors can also see the relationships between the various papers.
The Value Of Bibliometric Citation Analysis
These authors sell their choice of analysis as follows:
“Bibliometric analysis unveils pivotal articles and objectively illustrates the linkages between and among articles about a certain research topic or filed by analyzing how many times they have been co-cited by other published articles.”
Fetscherin and Heinrich, 2015, page 381
They identify seven broad categories of study within brand relationships. These range from ‘relationships between various consumer brand relationship constructs’ to ‘storytelling and brand relationships’. Their figure illustrating the relationships and key papers over time is a lot of fun. Even so it is somewhat intimidating. The figure has a ridiculous amount of circles and arrows. (It is very “conspiracy theorist wall”).
What Venues Publish The Papers?
Where then are the papers published? Mostly business/management unsurprisingly. There is also a smattering of others, e.g., psychology. The Journal of Consumer Research being the top outlet for such work.
They also show what institutions have produced the work. Vanderbilt and the University of Wisconsin get top spots depending on whether you care most about volume of papers or total citations.
Overall I think such analysis can be very interesting. They are certainly a great project for students seeking to understand a field. One can get into deeper conversations about what exactly is influence and why do people cite etc… Still analyzing citations are still a nice easy way to start any review.
For a note on brand valuation see here.
Read: Marc Fetscherin and Daniel Heinrich (2015) Consumer brand relationships research: A bibliometric citation meta-analysis, Journal of Business Research, 68(2), pages 380-390