Reference diversity in JCR, JM, and JMR:: A reexamination and extension of Tellis, Chandy, and Ackerman (1999)

Results of a reference analysis led Tellis, Chandy, and Ackerman (1999) to conclude that Journal of Consumer Research (JCR) was not as diverse in its references as Journal of Marketing (JM) and Journal of Marketing Research (JMR). We reexamine the Tellis et al. conclusions with a reference analysis comparison of JCR, JM, and JMR from 1976 to 1995 using an expanded set of reference diversity indicators at the article level of analysis. Our reexamination reveals small or nonsignificant differences among the journals in discipline and journal variety. The results also indicate that JCR articles are more likely to rely on sources that are more conceptually distant from marketing and business than are articles in JM or JMR, regardless of time period. Trends over time reveal that whereas reference diversity among JCR articles has remained relatively stable, reference diversity among JM and JMR articles has increased and decreased, respectively, for two out of three diversity factors. We also extend the findings of Tellis et al. (1999) with a test of the assumption of a positive relationship between reference diversity and subsequent article influence using all 228 articles appearing in JCR from 1991 to 1995. Interestingly, we find that reference diversity has both positive and negative effects on article influence.