International entrepreneurship: a critical review of the research field

摘要

This study provides a comprehensive review of the International Entrepreneurship (IE) literature and analyses its evolution in relation to the criticisms made by previous reviews. For this purpose, 272 articles published in 20 journals indexed in the Journal Citation Report for the 1989-2015 period were analysed in depth. The results reveal that researchers have increasingly worked to address these criticisms. Nevertheless, these efforts have not been sufficient since theoretical difficulties that prevent a better understanding of the IE field continue. Therefore, this study conducts a critical discussion of these difficulties: the disparity between IE definitions, the terminological disparity between rapidly internationalising firms, and the inclusion of studies that compare entrepreneurship at the national level between countries. Finally, to improve understanding and enable further progress in IE research, recommendations and a roadmap for future research are proposed.