The state of country-of-origin research: A bibliometric review of trends and future

Abstract

The paper conducts a bibliometric analysis of the country of origin (COO) using 590 Scopus indexed articles of the past 30 years. The Trend analysis highlights 2023 as the most contributing year, along with growing trend since 1994, reflecting the concept's increasing significance. The citation analysis points out that the most prolific author is Diamantopoulos A. (1810 citations), the institution is Tilburg University Netherlands (1027 citations), and the country is the United States (10627 citations). Likewise, the most influential journal is International Marketing Review (4285 citations) and the article is “A Review and Meta-Analysis of Country-of-Origin Research” (1027 citations). The co-citation analysis revealed the multidimensionality of COO along its diverse effects and ethnocentrism as its knowledge foundation. Eight thematic clusters are discovered via bibliographic coupling, namely, dimensions of COO and consumer perception, product attribute, brand image, emerging and developed economies, ethnocentrism, and variations in COO and its impact. At last, co-occurrence analysis revealed consumer behaviour and international marketing (1993–2003), brand and brand image (2004–2013), and ethnocentrism (2014–2024) as the major keywords. The findings revealed that favourable COO perceptions can influence firms' international segmentation and positioning strategies. These perceptions also affect company performance and can be leveraged by governments to attract foreign investments, promote exports, and negotiate trade agreements. Future research could explore the impact of e-commerce, social media influence, sustainability mandates, and corporate social responsibility on COO influence. Additionally, a multi-level approach, incorporating both consumer (demand) and firm (supply) perspectives, is essential to understand how COO influences firm's different strategies.