Clarifying the Sharing Economy: Conceptualization, Typology, Antecedents, and Effects

Abstract

In the last decade, we have seen a spectacular rise of companies that are often described by the common term “the sharing economy.” The emerging academic research on the topic reflects the importance and the far-reaching implications of this phenomenon but also demonstrates a lack of conceptual clarity about what the sharing economy represents. By addressing the main conceptual tensions that exist in this field, our paper integrates the body of knowledge on the sharing economy, clarifies the concept, and develops a typology of sharing-economy organizations. We map out the antecedents and effects of the sharing economy, identifying empirical research that has been done at the consumer, provider, and platform levels of analysis and develop avenues for future research.