Mapping Small Firm Growth: A Bibliometric Analysis and Future Directions

Diogo Costa Almeida (), Paulo Afonso (), Luís Pinto Ferreira () and Ana Maria Soares ()
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Diogo Costa Almeida: University of Minho
Paulo Afonso: University of Minho
Luís Pinto Ferreira: Polytechnic of Porto
Ana Maria Soares: University of Minho

Chapter 6 in The Expanding Horizons of Business and Management, Volume I, 2026, pp 123-143 from Palgrave Macmillan

Abstract: Abstract The growth of small firms has a significant impact not only on the firms themselves but also on the economy and society. This chapter aims to provide an overview of research on the determinants of small firm growth and to identify possible avenues for future research. A total of 111 articles were selected from the Web of Science database. Following a bibliometric analysis, the most relevant authors, journals, and countries are presented. Additionally, the main areas that these papers cover are summarized. Finally, starting points and research questions for potential future studies are identified. The results show a growth in the number of publications in this area in recent years. This chapter describes the main topics of interest within this area, the primary concepts and methods used. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the only study using a bibliometric approach on the topic of firm growth determinants.

Keywords: bibliometric analysis; small business; content analysis; VOSviewer; gibrats-law; firm size; firm growth determinants; innovation; investment; research-and-development; financial constraints; characteristics of the entrepreneur; characteristics of the firm; external factors; number of employees (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pal:pscchp:978-3-032-26496-1_6

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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-032-26496-1_6

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