Abstract By searching family business succession research literature from 1997 to 2019 based on SSCI database, this study uses bibliometric analysis and content analysis to investigate the external features and research topics of family business succession literature, and obtains the following results: Firstly, from the external characteristics of the literature, the published quantity base of research literature presents a steady upward trend. The quality of literature published is high. The core group of authors in the research field of family business succession has been emerging gradually, but there is little cross-institutional cooperation and communication among scholars. Secondly, there are eight research themes in foreign literature: Research on female successors in family business; Research on succession intention of internal successors in family business; Research on the role of consultant in family business succession and so on. According to the process of succession, eight research themes can be integrated into the planning stage before succession, the control stage during succession and the influence stage after succession to construct the research framework of “BDA”. Finally, suggestions are made on the possible directions in the three stages of family business succession research.
YANG Xuelei,LI Weining,SHANG Hangbiao. Research Status and Theme Identification of Family Business Succession Based on Bibliometric Analysis[J]. Chinese Journal of Management, 2021, 18(2): 306-.
