Mapping Theories Within The Literature On Sustainable Business Models: A Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

The literature on SBMs is recent and evolving. It rests on earlier well-established literature, that of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Corporate Sustainability (CS). In these fields of research, there are already numerous works that have identified and mapped the relevant and most used theories. On the other hand, much of the literature on sustainable business models (SBMs) has yet to be catalogued. Therefore, to fill this existing gap, this study has undertaken a systematized review of the literature. This review process is based on Denyer and Tranfield's (2009) logical steps with a twofold objective: first, to map existing theories in the field of sustainable business models, starting with the main theories of CSR and CS and studying their uses, and then to explore additional existing theories and how they too are used for explaining some aspects of SBMs. Second, seek to understand whether the use of different theories is complementary within this still emerging and growing literature devoted to SBMs. This systematic review will represent a survey of all existing theoretical perspectives used to date to explain aspects of a sustainable business model, then leave room for further future research in this area.