Study goals
The main objective of this article is to analyze the scientific production related to absorptive capacity and innovation. The specific objectives, in turn, are: (1) to identify relevant studies that may point to future studies related to absorptive capacity and innovation; and (2) to identify the studies that lead researchers to the intellectual structure of research on this subject.
Relevance / originality
In a preliminary consultation with the Web of Science database (2019), only two bibliometric works focused on absorptive capacity and innovation were located using studies conducted until 2015. However, more than 1,300 articles were published with new perspectives advancing studies on this topic after 2015.
Methodology / approach
Among the different types of analyses that can be performed in a bibliometry, we chose to perform the bibliographic coupling and cocitation analysis. According to Vogel and Güttel (2013), the analysis of cocitation and bibliographic coupling differ stemming from the level of analysis: while cocitation is a similarity relationship between two publications cited, the bibliographic coupling is a measure of association between two published. While cocitation is a reliable indicator of the impact of publications, bibliographic coupling measures publishing activity (Vogel & Güttel, 2013). A total of 3,698 articles were found in two databases, with 2,278 articles in the Web of Science and 920 articles in Scopus.
Main results
The bibliographic coupling resulted in 6 factors that point to the trends of future studies on the theme of absorptive capacity and innovation. On the other hand, the cocitation analysis presented the intellectual structure that is predominant in the themes arising from the bibliographic coupling . It is noted that most of the studies that were based on Factor A (organizational network structure and knowledge transfer) were related to Factors 2 and 5 from an organizational level perspective, as they address the life cycle of interorganizational alliances, the influence of the high echelon (CEO), organizational learning and innovation of the business model. Factor B (absorptive capacity and internal and external organizational routines) was related to Factors 3 and 6, dealing with topics such as the mode of interaction of companies, the geographical scope of alliances, networks of entrepreneurs, development human resources, standardization and best practices for knowledge sharing. Although Factor B has also addressed themes at organizational levels, it is perceived that there are studies at the collective level. Finally, Factor C (organizational learning and technological evolution) was related to Factors 1 and 4, presenting aspects related to the types of inter-organizational knowledge networks, technological diversification and new perspectives of innovation, plus a different look at Factor 6.
Theoretical / methodological contributions
In the end, themes were presented that can help the development of new studies related to absorptive capacity and innovation.
Social / management contributions
This study can generate ideas and point to gaps that, once explored, can solve problems and challenges at different levels of analysis.