Does J apan Still Matter? Past Tendencies and Future Opportunities in the Study of J apanese Firms

This paper engages with the question ‘does J apan still matter’ by systematically reviewing publication patterns in peer‐reviewed academic journal articles addressing J apanese firms and their management practices, illustrating the academic discourse surrounding Japanese firms over four decades, and by identifying future research opportunities. Initially, particularly from the 1980s when J apanese firms came to prominence, these practices tended to be identified as ‘best practice’. However, at least in part due to socio‐economic changes, this tendency has become less prominent since the ‘bubble economy’ burst. Instead, three broader developments are observed: the examination of the continuity and change in the traditional J apanese model, a more complex approach that involves multiple themes of research, and leveraging new contexts to examine J apanese firms, including the long‐term recession, the rise of the E ast A sian economy, and the increasing importance of corporate social responsibility.