Intellectual Basis of Research on Alliances: A Bibliomatic Study

Abstract

The disorder that is apparent in the literature on inter-organizational relationships makes this field ideal for conducting quantitative studies that clarify the conceptual map and complement existing qualitative research. These latter studies only reflect the point of view of a small number of expert researchers, and hence provide a somewhat biased perspective on inter-organizational relationship research. In this context, a bibliometric study should contribute to giving form to the state of the art. In this chapter, a bibliometric study reveals the theoretical fragmentation of the literature on inter-organizational relationships; maps the most relevant studies and theoretical approaches; and highlights the topics that have been addressed most in this field.