Mapping the most competitive journals in advertising research. A bibliometric analysis in a 25-year period

ABSTRACT Purpose This research presents a bibliometric analysis of the main advertising trends used as a means of investigation in the business area. This article identifies leading journals and provides a collaborative network researcher for future use in the generation of knowledge. Design/Methodology/Approach This study examines 4,449 publications from the Web of Science Core Collection database for the 1992–2016 period. The authors analyze bibliometric indicators including the number of publications and citations, the citations per paper, five-year period analysis (quinquennial), h-index, citation thresholds and co-occurrence of authors keywords analysis. It develops bibliographical coupling and co-citations analysis by using the visualization of similarities Viewer Software. Findings Results show a growing trend in the number of advertising´s publications. The Journal of Advertising has been the most cited and the Journal of Advertising Research has the largest number of papers. In regards to the h-index, the three most relevant journals in advertising are Journal of Advertising, Journal of Advertising Research, and the International Journal of Advertising. Originality This article is the first one that contributes with a complete overview of the field of advertising research as a mean of investigation, in a 25-year period. Especially from the business scientific research area through bibliometric indicators, journal rankings, content, citations, and bibliographic coupling, co-citations, and keywords analysis.