After 30 Years, What Has Happened to Activity-Based Costing? A Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

After more than 30 years of using Activity-Based Costing (ABC) to determine costs, just a few studies have analyzed its publications. This article aims to conduct a systematic, comprehensive literature review analyzing papers on ABC to overview what has been researched and give future research directions. The study includes descriptive, relational and content analyses of 1,260 articles retrieved from Scopus over 32 years (1988–2019). Our research shows publication trends, the most influential journals, authors and countries, citations, H-index, authorship, objectives, keywords co-occurrences, and research methods. Moreover, twelve objective categories are proposed. The results show a still-growing interest in ABC, especially in health and manufacturing, where there have been more practical applications. The case study is the most used research methodology, and the United States is the leading country regarding academic productivity and citations. The study provides useful information for professionals and business managers, and academics.