YOGYAKARTA — A comprehensive bibliometric study confirms that global marketing communication trends have undergone a major paradigm shift, transitioning from mere promotional tools aimed at shaping consumer perception into strategies anchored in ethics and corporate social responsibility. Published by Ikhzanul Amri, Agung Utama, and Tony Wijaya from Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta in 2026, this research analyzes decades of scientific literature published from the 1990s through the current digital transformation era. These findings provide vital guidance for modern businesses seeking long-term reputation and market legitimacy amidst transparent digital economies.
With the rapid acceleration of information technology and social media platforms, consumer perception is no longer dictated solely by product quality or compelling visual advertising. Modern digital consumers evaluate corporate integrity, honesty, and ethical values reflected across every brand communication channel. Companies that fail to maintain ethical transparency risk eroding customer trust, which directly leads to declining brand loyalty. Consequently, mapping the academic research landscape is essential to understanding how true consumer trust is cultivated through ethical communication practices.
To uncover this theoretical evolution, the research team curated 103 Scopus-indexed articles published between 1992 and 2025 using a rigorous multi-stage selection procedure. The extracted publication metadata was analyzed using VOSviewer software to visually map co-occurrence networks, author collaborations, and thematic cluster distributions over time. This bibliometric methodology enabled the authors to trace long-term conceptual shifts without relying strictly on localized descriptive surveys.
The research findings reveal a dramatic surge in academic publications after 2016, specifically focusing on corporate ethics, digital engagement, and message transparency. The network mapping identified six core thematic clusters, encompassing consumer attitude formation, digital marketing engagement, brand loyalty building, academic foundations, corporate ethical communication strategies, and ad credibility. This evolution demonstrates that global scholarly attention has shifted away from traditional persuasive tactics toward a newly established paradigm known as ethical trust-based marketing communication.
These findings carry important strategic implications for corporate leaders, policy makers, and marketing practitioners worldwide. Businesses are advised to embed ethical principles, operational transparency, and social responsibility into their core digital messaging to sustain brand loyalty. Ultimately, this study demonstrates that in today's digital economy, corporate ethics and message integrity are no longer optional moral duties, but essential strategic assets required to maintain sustainable competitive advantage.
The authors of this study are Ikhzanul Amri, Agung Utama, and Tony Wijaya from Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta.
Judul Artikel: From Consumer Perception to Corporate Ethics: A Bibliometric Review of the Evolution of Marketing Communication and Consumer Trust
Nama Jurnal: East Asian Journal of Multidisciplinary Research (EAJMR)
Tahun Publikasi: 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.55927/eajmr.v5i9.320
URL Jurnal: https://journaleajmr.my.id/index.php/eajmr
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