Productivity and Coauthorship in JPSSM: A Social Network Analysis

UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
Zhiyong Yang, Professor and Department Head (Creator)
Institution
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )
Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/

Abstract: This paper examines the key individual contributors and institutional contributors to JPSSM, covering 628 articles written by 761 authors since the journal’s inception in fall/winter 1980 until its fall 2009 issue. The nature and the dynamics of the coauthor networks of the journal’s leading individual contributors are further investigated. Results indicate that leading contributors to JPSSM are also major contributors to other academic outlets that have published sales research. These authors possess at least one common trait: they effectively network and collaborate with other sales scholars. In addition, their coauthor networks change over time, both in membership and in structure. For the most, coauthor networks evolve by reducing some members and bringing in new ones. In many cases, however, membership change is accompanied by a structural change, usually from a fragmented network to a dense network. Research findings have important implications for understanding the development of sales knowledge and the contribution of sales scholars and their institutions. University administrators can also use the findings of this paper as a benchmark to define “reasonable” publication expectations for faculty with an interest in sales management research.

Additional Information

Publication
Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 30(1), 47–71
Language: English
Date: 2010
Keywords
sales management research, academic coauthorship, social network analysis

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