We investigate the corpus of literature on firm exit by means of a systematic literature review (SLR) which yields a final sample of 142 journal articles for the period 1991–2020. The phenomenon of firm exit is explored from a variety of perspectives: business exit; exit at the individual entrepreneur level; exit from specific markets; exit from foreign markets; and the role of exit for industrial dynamics conceived more broadly. Special attention is given to the various exit routes, including voluntary liquidation, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), initial public offerings (IPO), and of course bankruptcy. The SLR sets the scene for the Special Issue papers that are presented towards the end, and we conclude with some suggestions for future research.

The Plain English Summary This article develops a systematic literature review around three decades of firm exit research, patterns, developments, and intriguing gaps. In this paper, we systematically review 142 studies on firm exit from various perspectives, identify major patterns, and outline the debate around firm exit. We propose reflections useful for scholars willing to engage in firm exit research in the future and set the scene for the special issue papers. Overall, this work shows the remarkable progress made in the area of firm exit that has evolved from the view of exit as a homogenous event signaling failure to a vision of exit as a heterogenous event. Exploring the sources of heterogeneity of exits from various perspectives could offer promising paths for future research.

我们通过系统的文献综述（SLR）来研究企业退出的文献集，该文献最终得出1991-2020年间142篇期刊文章的样本。企业退出的现象从多种角度探讨：企业退出；企业退出；企业退出。在个人企业家级别退出；从特定市场退出；退出国外市场；出口在工业动力中的作用得到了更广泛的构想。特别注意各种退出途径，包括自愿清算，并购（M＆A），首次公开募股（IPO），当然还有破产。SLR为即将出版的《特刊》论文奠定了基础，最后我们为将来的研究提供了一些建议。

朴素的英语摘要本文围绕企业退出研究，模式，发展和令人着迷的差距的三十年展开了系统的文献综述。在本文中，我们从各种角度系统地回顾了142项关于公司退出的研究，确定了主要模式，并概述了关于公司退出的争论。我们提出了一些对将来愿意从事公司退出研究的学者有用的思考，并为特刊撰写了背景。总的来说，这项工作表明，在公司退出领域已取得了显着进步，从已经将退出视为同质事件的同质事件的观点，发展到了将退出视为异质事件的愿景。从各种角度探讨出口异质性的来源可能为未来的研究提供有希望的途径。