Put more effort into clarifying assumptions, conceptualizing and theorizing (explaining the logic) a phenomenon or problem

Be aware of and address the limitations of a known theory if you choose to apply it. Put more effort into problematization and move away from superficial mention of a theory

Align research problems to generate new knowledge

With novel and complex phenomena, middle-range theory, abductive reasoning approach, design science and intervention-based approach should be used as emerging theoretical designs with practical relevance

The novelty here means new knowledge and understanding, starting from a deep understanding of a stream of research, normally created by new concepts, perspectives, theoretical explanations and/or evidence/analysis, but also adding new knowledge to an existing stream of literature or theoretical perspective

Novelty also comes from asking new questions, explaining a phenomenon from a different perspective and integrating new ideas into old ones

Interdisciplinary approaches that blend insights from different fields can lead to the creation of novel insights, enriching the existing stream of literature by offering a more comprehensive and nuanced understanding

Novelty also requires challenging conventional approaches by introducing new constructs to capture emerging phenomena, navigate evolving industry complexities and address the ambiguity surrounding the dimensions of a business problem

Do not ignore rigor in conceptualization and theorization

Post-data collection tests of rigors cannot fix conceptualization, theorization and measurement issues created during the study design

Put more effort into ensuring data and methods reliability and transparency to facilitate readability for reviewers and future research replication

Use methods with the latest guidelines with the highest rigor

Clearly justify the chosen research methodology

Even though the description of a phenomenon (what question) is key, do not stop here. Avoid creating (vague/broad) themes that have no theoretical meanings

Put more effort into conceptualizing data into theoretical concepts that help theorize

Focus on explaining how and why things or people behave in specific manners, differentiating them under different conditions (when, where)

Avoid speculative claims (e.g. AI improves resilience) without explaining the underlying mechanisms. Novel theoretical insights (a deeper understanding) are the core for claiming contribution

Good research should be both interesting and influential, assisting decision-makers in better comprehending complexities and tackling novel problems effectively

Put less effort into describing the literature, authors, studies, journals, methods, citation count, etc. The goal of a literature review is to assess how the literature uses concepts, theories, data/evidence and analyses to better understand a real-world phenomenon, not to count citations or list topics being studied

Focus on literature reviews that show how to advance concepts, theories, methods and analyses and add new knowledge to a phenomenon or problem

It aims to unravel intricate interactions among theories, themes and contextualized mechanisms, focusing on “for whom” by elucidating key actors and their impact, revealing the “in what circumstances” dimension, clarifying impactful perspectives and addressing the crucial “when” factor in practice implementation, contributing to a comprehensive understanding of the research