Abstract Purpose The aim of this study is to identify the distinctive features of the diaspora phenomenon through the aggregation and systematization of the business and management literature and propose a framework to apply in the future studies. Design/methodology/approach The two-step research was based on a combination of bibliometric analysis and a manual in-depth study of academic articles. Overall, 421 academic papers in management and business journals until 2019 year were analyzed. Findings The authors provide a new holistic insight on the role of national diasporas for business outcomes via the analysis and systematization of the extant diaspora research. They revealed four definition approaches and five main clusters in the diaspora literature that have three main directions of research as international marketing with the tourism management focus, the IB research and diaspora entrepreneurship studies. The authors cover these main research streams and their contribution to the development of a topic. Research limitations/implications The proposed framework including definition approaches and suggestions on the further research can serve as a foundation for future studies to investigate the diaspora phenomenon. The findings also are of practical value for firms whose attention is paid to the effective management. Originality/value To bring more clarity to the existing and future development of diaspora research, this paper improves the structuring of the overall diaspora literature through clarification of the existing definitions of diaspora, provision of the criteria qualifying someone to be identified as a member of a diaspora, as well as an analysis and systematization of existing diaspora research streams and suggestions for future research directions.
