Thematic, research design and theory application of business internship research: a systematic review

Abstract

This study provides a comprehensive review of the research design, themes, and theoretical development of internship literature in the context of business students. One hundred and ninety-two (192) articles retrieved from Scopus, Google Scholar, and the Web of Science databases and published from 1979 to 2022 were analysed. Information on bibliographic data and research design was presented using frequencies while research themes and the theoretical approach were content analysed. The findings reveal that, though business internship research is about four decades old, the knowledge domain is underdeveloped with respect to theory application, examination of relationships between antecedent, outcome, mediating and moderating variables and use of multivariate analysis. The study found previous studies were more focused on the interns’ career development, prospects, satisfaction, and employability, the benefits and role of internships, and the impact of internships on students’ academic performance. The findings highlight the vital need for a more balanced approach to business student internship research, moving beyond quantitative methodologies and towards a broader understanding through qualitative and mixed-methods investigations, ensuring sample adequacy, and exploring workplace variables.

Keywords:

• Internship
• business students
• systematic literature reviews
• research design
• theory
• research themes

REVIEWING EDITOR:

• Darwin Stephen, Universidad Alberto Hurtado, Chile

SUBJECTS:

• Education Policy & Politics
• Higher education
• Education - social sciences

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Edem Maxwell Azila-Gbettor

Edem M. Azila-Gbettor is an Associate Professor in Management at the Department of Management Sciences, Ho Technical University. His research interests are in the fields of: family business; workplace behaviours; higher education; human resource management; leadership; academic dishonesty; and well-being.

Christopher Mensah

Christopher Mensah is an Associate Professor in Hospitality and Tourism at the Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Ho Technical University. His research interests are in the fields of: sexual harassment in hospitality and tourism/customer satisfaction; hospitality human resource management; academic dishonesty; festivals and trade fairs; and hospitality education.

Abigail Nana Konadu Quarshie

Abigail Nana Konadu Quarshie is an assistant lecturer at the Department of Management Sciences at Ho Technical University. Her research interests include workplace and organizational behaviour, mining and climate change.

Martin K. Abiemo

Martin K. Abiemo is a principal technician within the Department of Management Sciences at Ho Technical University. His research domains span Human Resource Management (HRM) practices, employee well-being, education and management, organisational behaviour, entrepreneurship, and aspects of student well-being and psychology.