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<p>This study consolidates sustained competitive advantage (SCA) as a distinct knowledge domain and addresses fragmentation in how SCA is conceptualized, explained, and operationalized across research streams. Using a bibliometric-systematic literature review design, we analyze 657 peer-reviewed journal articles from the Web of Science Core Collection (1991–2026). Integrating performance indicators with science-mapping techniques (e.g., co-citation analysis, keyword co-occurrence clustering, timeline mapping, and citation-burst detection), we move beyond descriptive mapping to develop a mechanism-based synthesis of the field. Specifically, our clustering approach enables a cross-disciplinary consolidation of fragmented research streams, revealing how different theoretical lenses jointly explain the formation and persistence of competitive advantage. The findings indicate a highly concentrated intellectual backbone anchored in the resource-based view, complemented by a dynamic capabilities pillar. The thematic structure comprises five interrelated streams: (i) IT/IS strategy and resource orchestration, (ii) RBV-based value creation and value capture with capability renewal pathways, (iii) IT capability configurations and data-enabled value creation and capture, (iv) high-performance work systems and HRM fit linked to innovation and productivity, and (v) entrepreneurial and analytics-enabled dynamic capabilities for innovation-driven advantage. Unlike previous RBV- and SCA-focused reviews, this study contributes to the existing literature by integrating these streams into a coherent mechanism-based framework that highlights how mediating processes, capability configurations, and contextual factors (e.g., CSR, sustainability, and supply chains) jointly contribute to SCA. In doing so, it extends beyond structural mapping to provide a mechanism-oriented understanding of how competitive advantage is formed, sustained, and transformed over time. Overall, the review provides a reproducible map of SCA’s foundations and evolution, and advances a cluster-informed agenda to support more cumulative, mechanism-based theory development.</p>

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Mapping the knowledge structure of sustained competitive advantage: core theories, clusters, and research agenda

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年5月28日

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  • Khanh Huy Nguyen,
  • An Khang Trinh,
  • Thi Ngoc Tram Tran,
  • Phuong Quang Thi,
  • Mai Dong Tran

摘要

This study consolidates sustained competitive advantage (SCA) as a distinct knowledge domain and addresses fragmentation in how SCA is conceptualized, explained, and operationalized across research streams. Using a bibliometric-systematic literature review design, we analyze 657 peer-reviewed journal articles from the Web of Science Core Collection (1991–2026). Integrating performance indicators with science-mapping techniques (e.g., co-citation analysis, keyword co-occurrence clustering, timeline mapping, and citation-burst detection), we move beyond descriptive mapping to develop a mechanism-based synthesis of the field. Specifically, our clustering approach enables a cross-disciplinary consolidation of fragmented research streams, revealing how different theoretical lenses jointly explain the formation and persistence of competitive advantage. The findings indicate a highly concentrated intellectual backbone anchored in the resource-based view, complemented by a dynamic capabilities pillar. The thematic structure comprises five interrelated streams: (i) IT/IS strategy and resource orchestration, (ii) RBV-based value creation and value capture with capability renewal pathways, (iii) IT capability configurations and data-enabled value creation and capture, (iv) high-performance work systems and HRM fit linked to innovation and productivity, and (v) entrepreneurial and analytics-enabled dynamic capabilities for innovation-driven advantage. Unlike previous RBV- and SCA-focused reviews, this study contributes to the existing literature by integrating these streams into a coherent mechanism-based framework that highlights how mediating processes, capability configurations, and contextual factors (e.g., CSR, sustainability, and supply chains) jointly contribute to SCA. In doing so, it extends beyond structural mapping to provide a mechanism-oriented understanding of how competitive advantage is formed, sustained, and transformed over time. Overall, the review provides a reproducible map of SCA’s foundations and evolution, and advances a cluster-informed agenda to support more cumulative, mechanism-based theory development.