A Cross-Disciplinary Review of Blockchain Research Trends and Methodologies: Topic Modeling Approach

Abstract

Given the increasing interest in blockchain technology, we present a large-scale cross-disciplinary literature analysis of research on the blockchain using topic modelling with the goal of identifying the major research trends, research methodologies, and fruitful areas for further research. In particular, the analysis focuses on abstracting out research trends from relevant terms and topics related to the research disciplines of Business, Computer Science, Economics, Social Sciences, Engineering, Healthcare, and Law. A total of 2,125 articles published between 2008 to up until early 2019 in academic journals and conferences were analyzed. Results of our analysis reveal that research is bipartite between practical and research domains, with academic research on blockchain not clearly aligning with organizational and social benefits. Also, we found – 1) few inter-disciplinary publications, and 2) a small number of studies that use surveys, experiments, and case studies as their research method. Our findings also reveal that research on Blockchain in the social sciences and law is still in the embryonic stage, thus making it essential to develop more direct research efforts for Blockchain to thrive in all research disciplines.