IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/transa/v45y2011i7p667-685.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Seaport research: A structured literature review on methodological issues since the 1980s

Author

Listed:
  • Woo, Su-Han
  • Pettit, Stephen J.
  • Kwak, Dong-Wook
  • Beresford, Anthony K.C.

Abstract

This study aims to investigate how seaport research has been conducted from the methodological perspective. To this end, this study reviews published port literature for the last three decades (1980-2000s). The investigation primarily categorises the literature according to various methodological issues such as research paradigm, research strategy, base-disciplines, research methods and analysis techniques in order to provide meaningful implications on methodological evolution in seaport research for the period. This study suggests methodological bias in port research to a positivistic paradigm, following a quantitative trajectory moving from conceptual to empirical studies. In addition, the increased use of mathematical modelling and advanced statistical analysis methods is clearly observed. The introduction of advanced analytical tools used in other academic disciplines facilitates discussions in particular research area and amplifies the literature in those areas. This paper also suggests research gaps from the methodological perspective and implications for future port research.

Suggested Citation

  • Woo, Su-Han & Pettit, Stephen J. & Kwak, Dong-Wook & Beresford, Anthony K.C., 2011. "Seaport research: A structured literature review on methodological issues since the 1980s," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 45(7), pages 667-685, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:transa:v:45:y:2011:i:7:p:667-685
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965856411000796
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Carlos Pestana Barros, 2003. "Incentive Regulation and Efficiency of Portuguese Port Authorities," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 5(1), pages 55-69, March.
    2. Fernanda Morillo & María Bordons & Isabel Gómez, 2003. "Interdisciplinarity in science: A tentative typology of disciplines and research areas," Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 54(13), pages 1237-1249, November.
    3. Cullinane, Kevin & Song, Dong-Wook & Gray, Richard, 2002. "A stochastic frontier model of the efficiency of major container terminals in Asia: assessing the influence of administrative and ownership structures," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 36(8), pages 743-762, October.
    4. Goles, Tim & Hirschheim, Rudy, 2000. "The paradigm is dead, the paradigm is dead...long live the paradigm: the legacy of Burrell and Morgan," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 249-268, June.
    5. Yuhong Wang & Kevin Cullinane, 2008. "Measuring Container Port Accessibility: An Application of the Principal Eigenvector Method (PEM)," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 10(1-2), pages 75-89, March.
    6. Chinonye Ugboma & Ogochukwu Ugboma & Innocent C Ogwude, 2006. "An Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) Approach to Port Selection Decisions – Empirical Evidence from Nigerian Ports," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 8(3), pages 251-266, September.
    7. Yap, Wei Yim & Lam, Jasmine S.L., 2006. "Competition dynamics between container ports in East Asia," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 35-51, January.
    8. Lorena Garcia-Alonso & Joaquín Sanchez-Soriano, 2009. "Port selection from a hinterland perspective," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 11(3), pages 260-269, September.
    9. Castillo-Manzano, José I. & Castro-Nuño, Mercedes & Laxe, Fernando González & López-Valpuesta, Lourdes & Teresa Arévalo-Quijada, M., 2009. "Low-cost port competitiveness index: Implementation in the Spanish port system," Marine Policy, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 591-598, July.
    10. Mohd Daud Norzaidi & Siong Choy Chong & Raman Murali & Mohamed Intan Salwani, 2009. "Towards a holistic model in investigating the effects of intranet usage on managerial performance: a study on Malaysian port industry," Maritime Policy & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 36(3), pages 269-289, June.
    11. Gu-Tae Yeo & Dong-Wook Song, 2006. "An Application of the Hierarchical Fuzzy Process to Container Port Competition: Policy and Strategic Implications," Transportation, Springer, vol. 33(4), pages 409-422, July.
    12. T C Lirn & H A Thanopoulou & M J Beynon & A K C Beresford, 2004. "An Application of AHP on Transhipment Port Selection: A Global Perspective," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 6(1), pages 70-91, March.
    13. Theo E. Notteboom * & Jean-Paul Rodrigue, 2005. "Port regionalization: towards a new phase in port development," Maritime Policy & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 32(3), pages 297-313, July.
    14. Malchow, Matthew B. & Kanafani, Adib, 2004. "A disaggregate analysis of port selection," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 40(4), pages 317-337, July.
    15. H A van Klink, 1998. "The Port Network as a New Stage in Port Development: The Case of Rotterdam," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 30(1), pages 143-160, January.
    16. Jose Tongzon & Lavina Sawant, 2007. "Port choice in a competitive environment: from the shipping lines' perspective," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(4), pages 477-492.
    17. Mears-Young, Bridget & Jackson, Mike C., 1997. "Integrated logistics--call in the revolutionaries!," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 25(6), pages 605-618, December.
    18. María Manuela González & Lourdes Trujillo, 2009. "Efficiency Measurement in the Port Industry: A Survey of the Empirical Evidence," Journal of Transport Economics and Policy, University of Bath, vol. 43(2), pages 157-192, May.
    19. Mateus Magala & Adrian Sammons, 2008. "A New Approach to Port Choice Modelling," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 10(1-2), pages 9-34, March.
    20. King-Fai Fung, 2001. "Competition between the ports of Hong Kong and Singapore: a structural vector error correction model to forecast the demand for container handling services," Maritime Policy & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(1), pages 3-22, January.
    21. Richard O Goss, 2002. "An Early History of Maritime Economics," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 4(4), pages 390-404, December.
    22. Cullinane, Kevin & Wang, Teng-Fei & Song, Dong-Wook & Ji, Ping, 2006. "The technical efficiency of container ports: Comparing data envelopment analysis and stochastic frontier analysis," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 40(4), pages 354-374, May.
    23. Athanasios A. Pallis & Thomas K. Vitsounis & Peter W. De Langen, 2009. "Port Economics, Policy and Management: Review of an Emerging Research Field," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 30(1), pages 115-161, February.
    24. Guihaire, Valérie & Hao, Jin-Kao, 2008. "Transit network design and scheduling: A global review," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 42(10), pages 1251-1273, December.
    25. Krugman, Paul, 1998. "What's New about the New Economic Geography?," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 14(2), pages 7-17, Summer.
    26. Malchow, Matthew Brian, 2001. "An Analysis of Port Selection," Institute of Transportation Studies, Research Reports, Working Papers, Proceedings qt4911j5zt, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Berkeley.
    27. Photis M Panayides, 2006. "Maritime Logistics and Global Supply Chains: Towards a Research Agenda," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 8(1), pages 3-18, March.
    28. Khalid Bichou & Michael G H Bell, 2007. "Internationalisation and Consolidation of the Container Port Industry: Assessment of Channel Structure and Relationships," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 9(1), pages 35-51, March.
    29. Soppé, Martin & Parola, Francesco & Frémont, Antoine, 2009. "Emerging inter-industry partnerships between shipping lines and stevedores: from rivalry to cooperation?," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 17(1), pages 10-20.
    30. Matthew Malchow & Adib Kanafani, 2001. "A disaggregate analysis of factors influencing port selection," Maritime Policy & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(3), pages 265-277, July.
    31. John Van Maanen, 1995. "Fear and Loathing in Organization Studies," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 6(6), pages 687-692, December.
    32. Cullinane, Kevin & Toy, Neal, 2000. "Identifying influential attributes in freight route/mode choice decisions: a content analysis," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 36(1), pages 41-53, March.
    33. Baird, Alfred J, 1995. "Privatisation of trust ports in the United Kingdom: Review and analysis of the first sales," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 2(2), pages 135-143, April.
    34. Lord, Dominique & Mannering, Fred, 2010. "The statistical analysis of crash-frequency data: A review and assessment of methodological alternatives," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 44(5), pages 291-305, June.
    35. Tosic, Vojin, 1992. "A review of airport passenger terminal operations analysis and modelling," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 26(1), pages 3-26, January.
    36. Graham-Rowe, Ella & Skippon, Stephen & Gardner, Benjamin & Abraham, Charles, 2011. "Can we reduce car use and, if so, how? A review of available evidence," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 45(5), pages 401-418, June.
    37. Peter V. Hall, 2003. "Regional Institutional Convergence? Reflections from the Baltimore Waterfront," Economic Geography, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 79(4), pages 347-363, October.
    38. Richard Saundry & Peter Turnbull, 1997. "Private profit, public loss: The financial and economic performance of U.K. ports," Maritime Policy & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(4), pages 319-334, January.
    39. Simme J Veldman & Ewout H Bückmann & Rafael Nistal Saitua, 2005. "River Depth and Container Port Market Shares: The Impact of Deepening the Scheldt River on the West European Container Hub-Port Market Shares," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 7(4), pages 336-355, December.
    40. Heaver, Trevor, 2006. "The Evolution and Challenges of Port Economics," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 16(1), pages 11-41, January.
    41. Winston, Clifford, 1985. "Conceptual Development in the Economics of Transportation: An Interpretive Survey," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 23(1), pages 57-94, March.
    42. F. Suykens & E. Van De Voorde, 1998. "A quarter a century of port management in Europe: objectives and tools," Maritime Policy & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(3), pages 251-261, January.
    43. Claudio Ferrari & Manuela Basta, 2009. "Port concession fees based on the price-cap regulation: A DEA approach," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 11(1), pages 121-135, March.
    44. Emmanuel Guy & Bruno Urli, 2006. "Port Selection and Multicriteria Analysis: An Application to the Montreal-New York Alternative," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 8(2), pages 169-186, June.
    45. Francesco Parola & Enrico Musso, 2007. "Market structures and competitive strategies: the carrier--stevedore arm-wrestling in northern European ports," Maritime Policy & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 34(3), pages 259-278, June.
    46. Joachim Schummer, 2004. "Multidisciplinarity, interdisciplinarity, and patterns of research collaboration in nanoscience and nanotechnology," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 59(3), pages 425-465, March.
    47. Bontekoning, Y. M. & Macharis, C. & Trip, J. J., 2004. "Is a new applied transportation research field emerging?--A review of intermodal rail-truck freight transport literature," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 38(1), pages 1-34, January.
    48. Christopher M Anderson & James J Opaluch & Thomas A Grigalunas, 2009. "The Demand for Import Services at US Container Ports," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 11(2), pages 156-185, June.
    49. Cullinane, Kevin & Ji, Ping & Wang, Teng-fei, 2005. "The relationship between privatization and DEA estimates of efficiency in the container port industry," Journal of Economics and Business, Elsevier, vol. 57(5), pages 433-462.
    50. Low, Joyce M.W. & Lam, Shao Wei & Tang, Loon Ching, 2009. "Assessment of hub status among Asian ports from a network perspective," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 43(6), pages 593-606, July.
    51. Peter Turnbull, 2006. "The War on Europe’s Waterfront — Repertoires of Power in the Port Transport Industry," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 44(2), pages 305-326, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Su-Han Woo & Stephen Pettit & Anthony Beresford & Dong-Wook Kwak, 2012. "Seaport Research: A Decadal Analysis of Trends and Themes Since the 1980s," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 32(3), pages 351-377, January.
    2. Flitsch, Verena & Brümmerstedt, Katrin, 2015. "Freight Transport Modelling of Container Hinterland Supply Chains," Chapters from the Proceedings of the Hamburg International Conference of Logistics (HICL), in: Blecker, Thorsten & Kersten, Wolfgang & Ringle, Christian M. (ed.), Operational Excellence in Logistics and Supply Chains: Optimization Methods, Data-driven Approaches and Security Insights. Proceedings of the Hamburg , volume 22, pages 233-266, Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), Institute of Business Logistics and General Management.
    3. Julián Martínez Moya & María Feo Valero, 2017. "Port choice in container market: a literature review," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 37(3), pages 300-321, May.
    4. Balci, Gökcay & Cetin, Ismail Bilge & Esmer, Soner, 2018. "An evaluation of competition and selection criteria between dry bulk terminals in Izmir," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 294-304.
    5. Vega, Laura & Cantillo, Víctor & Arellana, Julián, 2019. "Assessing the impact of major infrastructure projects on port choice decision: The Colombian case," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 132-148.
    6. Sedat Baştuğ & Hercules Haralambides & Soner Esmer & Enes Eminoğlu, 2021. "Port competitiveness: Do container terminal operators and liner shipping companies see eye to eye?," Post-Print hal-04046233, HAL.
    7. Steven, Adams B. & Corsi, Thomas M., 2012. "Choosing a port: An analysis of containerized imports into the US," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 48(4), pages 881-895.
    8. M. A. Mueller & B. Wiegmans & J. H. R. Duin, 2020. "The geography of container port choice: modelling the impact of hinterland changes on port choice," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 22(1), pages 26-52, March.
    9. S. Veldman & L. Garcia-Alonso & M. Liu, 2016. "Testing port choice models using physical and monetary data: a comparative case study for the Spanish container trades," Maritime Policy & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 43(4), pages 495-508, May.
    10. Hokey Min & Byung-In Park, 2020. "A two-dimensional approach to assessing the impact of port selection factors on port competitiveness using the Kano model," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 22(3), pages 353-382, September.
    11. Tapia, Rodrigo Javier & dos Santos Senna, Luiz Afonso & Larranaga, Ana Margarita & Cybis, Helena Beatriz Bettella, 2019. "Joint mode and port choice for soy production in Buenos Aires province, Argentina," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 121(C), pages 100-118.
    12. José I. Castillo-Manzano & Juan P. Asencio-Flores, 2012. "Competition Between New Port Governance Models on the Iberian Peninsula," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 32(4), pages 519-537, January.
    13. Martínez-Pardo, Ana & Orro, Alfonso & Garcia-Alonso, Lorena, 2020. "Analysis of port choice: A methodological proposal adjusted with public data," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 136(C), pages 178-193.
    14. Larranaga, Ana Margarita & Arellana, Julian & Senna, Luiz Afonso, 2017. "Encouraging intermodality: A stated preference analysis of freight mode choice in Rio Grande do Sul," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 202-211.
    15. González, MarI´a Manuela & Trujillo, Lourdes, 2008. "Reforms and infrastructure efficiency in Spain's container ports," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 42(1), pages 243-257, January.
    16. Sanchez Rodrigues, Vasco & Beresford, Anthony & Pettit, Stephen & Bhattacharya, Syamantak & Harris, Irina, 2014. "Assessing the cost and CO2e impacts of rerouteing UK import containers," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 53-67.
    17. Ng, Adolf K.Y. & Ducruet, César & Jacobs, Wouter & Monios, Jason & Notteboom, Theo & Rodrigue, Jean-Paul & Slack, Brian & Tam, Ka-chai & Wilmsmeier, Gordon, 2014. "Port geography at the crossroads with human geography: between flows and spaces," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 84-96.
    18. Tavasszy, Lóránt & Minderhoud, Michiel & Perrin, Jean-François & Notteboom, Theo, 2011. "A strategic network choice model for global container flows: specification, estimation and application," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 19(6), pages 1163-1172.
    19. Felipe Lobo Umbelino Souza & Cira Souza Pitombo & Dong Yang, 2021. "Port choice in Brazil: a qualitative research related to in-depth interviews," Journal of Shipping and Trade, Springer, vol. 6(1), pages 1-22, December.
    20. Kevin Cullinane (ed.), 2011. "International Handbook of Maritime Economics," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 13163.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:transa:v:45:y:2011:i:7:p:667-685. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/547/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.