Sharing economy: A systematic thematic analysis of the literature

In this paper we present the results of our analyses of the existing literature on the sharing economy. It is important to understand the nature of the sharing economy, because its impacts on the larger economy, society, and governance are extensive and potentially deep and long lasting. Analyses of the 610 articles published between 2006 and 2018 show that there was a rapid increase in publications starting in 2014. Researchers in business, economics, technology, and environmental sciences were interested the most in the topic. There were relatively fewer publications in political science, public administration, and political science. Uber and Airbnb were the most studied platforms. The United States, China, and United Kingdom were the most commonly studied countries. A majority of the literature was a-theoretical. A majority of authors applied some empirical (qualitative and quantitative) research methods.