City Research Online

Abstract

Signalling theory offers a powerful lens for understanding how supply-chain actors reduce information asymmetry through observable, meaningful, and costly signals. However, Operations and Supply Chain Management (OSCM) research using signalling theory remains dispersed across contexts. This paper provides a systematic literature review of signalling theory in OSCM, synthesising 133 peer-reviewed papers from 25 leading OSCM journals. Using an abductive, theory-modification approach, we extend the traditional five-element model (signaller, signal, receiver, feedback, environment) to a seven-element framework by adding signalling process: how signals are generated and conveyed, and signalling outcome: what signalling ultimately produces. We show that OSCM studies broaden receivers to cover various stakeholders such as buyers, suppliers, retailers, customers, shareholders, and employees, while surfacing OSCM-specific signaller attributes such as supply chain position and power. We also synthesise how digital technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), and blockchain, reshape what counts as a signal and how credibility is built via traceability and verifiability. Building on industry priorities around digitalisation and sustainability, we propose a future research agenda, including technology-enabled signals, public feedback, penalty costs, and shifting signalling environments (e.g., geopolitical turbulence). Finally, we offer three tests as a foundational checklist for theory development using signalling theory.

Publication Type:	Article
Additional Information:	© 2026 Elsevier Ltd. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies. © 2026. This manuscript version is made available under the CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 license https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Publisher Keywords:	Signaling theory, Supplier selection, Information asymmetry, Systematic literature review
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor > HD28 Management. Industrial Management
Departments:	Bayes Business School Bayes Business School > Faculty of Management
SWORD Depositor:	Symplectic Administrator

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