International business research output and rankings of Asia-Pacific universities: A 40-year time-series analysis

International Collaboration and European Contributions to International Business Research

“…What is the role of international collaboration in overcoming such constraints? More generally, we were interested in understanding how European IB research evolved within a context of globalization of academic practices such as “publish or perish” (Miller et al 2011 ) or the use of journal publications as a measure of research performance (Aïssaoui and Geringer 2018 ; Geringer and von Glinow 1999 ; Lahiri and Kumar 2012 ; Ryazanova et al 2017 ).…”

“…Several recent bibliometric studies have shown that international business (IB) research has become geographically diversified, with increased mobility of researchers across borders. Simultaneously, while still a major producer of research, North American dominance in IB journal publications has evidenced a relative decline, partly a reflection of increased output by authors in Europe (Aïssaoui and Geringer 2018 ; Chan et al 2006 ; Ellis and Zhan 2011 ; Geringer and von Glinow 1999 ; Kothari and Lahiri 2012 ; Lahiri and Kumar 2012 ; Ryazanova et al 2017 ; Trevino et al 2010 ; Xu et al 2014 ). While most studies report on the Americanization of IB research (Mangematin and Baden Fuller 2008 ; Üsdiken 2014 ), this recent redistribution of relative geographic dominance between American and European institutions begs the question of whether Europeanization of IB research is a reflection of the American model of “publish or perish” (Miller et al 2011 ; Wilson 1942 ) or whether, instead, we are observing a fundamental transformation of the field where dynamic new clusters of IB research activity are emerging, often in conjunction with cross-border and inter-regional collaborations.…”

“…This finding is largely echoed in research assessing the evolution of published IB research output, which points to a clear Americanization of academic practices (de Rond and Miller 2010 ; Tsui 2007 ). For instance, Xu et al ( 2014 ) and Aïssaoui and Geringer ( 2018 ) find that development of IB research in the Asia–Pacific region was largely supported by extensive collaboration between Asia–Pacific and North American academic institutions. Specifically, Aïssaoui and Geringer ( 2018 ) note how hiring research stars from the U.S.—and the U.K.—represented a key strategy among Asia–Pacific universities as they sought to jumpstart their position as leading global actors in IB research.…”

Universities Under Pressure: the Impact of International University Rankings

“…These rankings cannot make university academics, staff and managers feel bad for what they are not, and what they are not commissioned to be. Besides that, these rankings are used as a reference for crucial decision-making (Aïssaoui & Geringer, 2018), to the point that the university's autonomy, at the service of the needs of society, would be weakened in favour of private agents not legitimised to establish the mission of higher education institutions. Aspects related to the values, purposes and policies of higher education are being set aside in the designing of these rankings (Lynch, 2015).…”

U.S. hegemony and international business research: Further considerations

“…These resource considerations highlight the potential transitional value of alternatives such as promoting academic mobility and fostering collaborative research undertakings, particularly with authors who may be located in highly productive or otherwise prestigious institutions (Ackers, 2005; Aissaoui & Geringer, 2018; Jonkers & Cruz‐Castro, 2013; Jons, 2009; Lages et al, 2015; Wapman et al, 2022). Such collaborative approaches can be particularly valuable for scholars located in institutional or national contexts that are the most under‐resourced (Aissaoui et al, 2021).…”