Appreciative inquiry: a systematic review and future research agenda

Purpose - This study reviews and synthesizes the research on appreciative inquiry (AI). It presents an intellectual structure of the field and highlights the recent trends in AI research. It presents a comprehensive research framework outlining the underlying mechanisms of AI and their corresponding potential functionalities across levels: individual, group and organisation. It provides future research avenues based on the synthesis. Design/methodology/approach - This study uses a bibliometric systematic literature review method. The presented analysis covers both bibliometric and in-depth manual content analysis. In total, 68 articles indexed in the Scopus database were analysed. Findings - The study shows a predominant focus on the application of AI in healthcare and education sectors, and most of the research is limited to the global north and the Pacific. It provides a comprehensive research framework proposing its application through other theoretical anchors and extending to multiple areas of management. Future research is required to determine the role of disseminators of the AI method and the boundary conditions in crafting the success narratives of AI as a method. Originality/value - This study takes advantage of both bibliometric and in-depth content analysis to expand the understanding of the intellectual structure and recent developments in AI. It demonstrates the emerging trends in AI literature, such as its use as an evaluating instrument and application to study sensitive populations. It reveals how AI effectively ensures perceptions of a safe space for vulnerable populations and highlights its scope of application to a broader set of domains. It highlights the future research directions to enrich AI literature.