Dynamic capabilities research in international marketing: a systematic literature review and direction for future research

Purpose This study intends to (1) systematically review methodological, theoretical and empirical aspects of dynamic capabilities (DCs) research in international marketing; (2) identify problematic areas and gaps in the reviewed literature and (c) provide directions to address problematic aspects and fill the gaps in future research. Design/methodology/approach The study applies a systematic literature review methodology and covers 97 articles published between 2001 and 2022 in peer-reviewed journals ranked 2, 3, 4 and 4* in the Academic Journal Guide 2021. Findings The content analysis shows that (1) methodologically, the literature is dominated by single-country studies conducted mostly in Asia and Europe on a cross-section of industries, mostly adopting survey-based approaches with a cross-sectional time emphasis; (2) theoretically, dynamic capabilities view is mainly accompanied by resource-based view, followed by institutional-, organizational learning- and internationalization theories; and (3) according to the nomological network, DCs are predicted by firm-characteristics, factors related to networks/relationship/partnerships and managerial characteristics, while they act as predictors of performance-related, strategy-related and operational change and renewal-specific outcomes. Several problematic aspects and gaps for each part of the review are diagnosed. Originality/value The authors provide a comprehensive assessment of current knowledge on methodological, theoretical and empirical aspects of the relevant literature, map a nomological network of variables surrounding DCs in international marketing research and offer future research directions capitalizing on the problems and gaps identified in the review.