Citation patterns in the finance literature

Out of a total of 12,637 individuals whose works were ever cited in the leading finance journals over the past 25 years, the top 1% (10%) account for more than one third (three quarters) of the number of citations to articles published in these journals. In contrast, nearly one half of the authors have been cited only once. Similarly, the top 1% (10%) of articles/books received 22% (56%) of the total number of citations. These results indicate that a few prominent researchers dominate citation in the leading finance journals. More than half of the 100 most cited works were published in the Journal of Finance and Journal of Financial Economics.