Corporate reputation in management research: a review of the literature and assessment of the concept

Abstract

The study of reputation figures prominently in management research, yet the increasing number of publications makes it difficult to keep track of this growing body of literature. This paper provides a systematic review of the literature based on a large-scale bibliometric analysis. We draw on bibliographic data of 5885 publications published until 2016, inclusively, and combine co-citation analysis and bibliographic coupling with network visualization. Results show how research on corporate reputation is embedded in the broader field of scholarship on reputation in general. When zooming into the publication cluster on corporate reputation more closely, the concept's origins in economics, organizational studies, and marketing as well as corresponding theoretical and methodological discussions are revealed. Beyond providing a structured overview of the field, the bibliometric analyses also reveal conceptual incoherencies that lead to ambiguities in research. Our assessment builds on the philosophy of science and is guided by the criteria of good concepts in social sciences. It shows that the concept of corporate reputation lacks internal coherence and could have more theoretical utility. We recommend focusing on corporate reputation as an attitudinal concept and thereby emphasizing the stakeholder who acts as an evaluator of the corporation.

Revisiting the five problems of public sector organisations and reputation management—the perspective of higher education practitioners and ex-academics

“…For example, it contributes to organisational stability, performance and market value; protects in crises; and makes it easier to recruit competent personnel and motivate them to stay (e.g. Bromley 2000;Fobrum and van Riel 2003;Luoma-aho 2007; see also Veh et al 2018). It has been suggested to encompass evaluations by all stakeholders, both internal and external groups (de Chernatony and Harris 2000).…”

Does Perceptions of Organizational Prestige Mediate the Relationship Between Public Service Motivation, Job Satisfaction, and the Turnover Intentions of Federal Employees?

“…This domain of research has received considerable attention in the general management literature, so it is important to distinguish it from other similar concepts, such as corporate reputation/ organizational image theories. A considerable amount of research has focused on the concept of corporate reputation (Veh et al, 2019) and reflects what stakeholders think and feel about a firm (Carroll, 2008; Ferguson et al, 2000). One can argue that corporate image is a first-person perspective of the beliefs that an individual hold regarding an organization.…”

Reputational Risk and Sustainability: A Bibliometric Analysis of Relevant Literature

“…For instance, co-citation analyses demonstrate the discipline of credibility analysis in the fields of finance, organizational science, and marketing.The findings of the bibliometric analyses are very real, we assume, because these are reflected in Bergh et al (Kunitsyna et al 2018). Not only the theoretical bases but also the value of the neighboring definition, such as image, identification, and status, are seen in the co-citation (Veh et al 2019). This is important to resolve the gap in the corporate reputation definition since the bibliographic combination study helps one to report the heart and the front line of corporate reputation research systematically.…”