{'fraction_non_alphanumeric': 0.05041354864119732, 'fraction_numerical': 0.017723513194170933, 'mean_word_length': 5.463104325699746, 'pattern_counts': {'":': 0, '<': 0, '<?xml version=': 0, '>': 0, 'https://': 0, 'lorem ipsum': 0, 'www.': 0, 'xml': 0}, 'pii_count': 0, 'substrings_counts': 0, 'word_list_counts': {'cursed_substrings.json': 2, 'profanity_word_list.json': 0, 'sexual_word_list.json': 0, 'zh_pornsignals.json': 0}}
Book Review: Marketing Theory and Metatheory

Those interested in the development of marketing theory will find this book stimulating, insightful, and rewarding. At this juncture in the progression of the marketing discipline, the book is a valuable addition to the literature. It provides a perspective on the characteristics of marketing theories, on the process by which theories in marketing are developed, and on the criteria for judging marketing theory. Metatheory refers to theory underlying the formulation of theories and theorization. It is distinct from the subject matter of marketing theories. As a discipline evolves, "the substance of theory and the form of theory are two distinct yet inseparable subjects for consideration." Whereas the 'subject of marketing forms the substance of marketing theory, form is part of the substance of a subject concerned with theory itself-metatheory for it pertains "to the requirements of theory formulation, with particular reference to the structure of thought and to the utilization of language for the communication of meaning." The book comprises 18 chapters, 15 of which are drawn from the author's earlier writings and span a period of almost 30 years. Three chapters, "Marketing Metatheory" (Chapter 1), "Marketing Theory" (Chapter 2), and "A Metatheory for World Marketing" (Chapter 18) are new. Chapters 1 and 2 provide a contextual framework for the chapters that follow. In Chapter 1 the nature and meaning of metatheory are developed along with seven axioms stating the requisite qualities of theories. An analysis of the evolution of theory in marketing is presented in Chapter 2. The titles of the chapters, previously published as articles, are: "Development of Marketing Thought: A Brief History" (Chapter 3); "Marketing Principles" (Chapter 4); "Marketing Theory: Its Essential Nature" (Chapter 5); "The Role of Theory in the Teaching of Marketing" (Chapter 6) ; "Can Marketing Be a Science" (Chapter 7); "Influences on the Development of Marketing Thought, 1900-1923" (Chapter 8); "The Dimensions of Marketing Thought" (Chapter 9); "Sociologists and Marketologists" (Chapter 10); "Marketing as a Social and Political Tool" (Chapter 11); "Marketing" (Chapter 12); "A Methodological Framework for Comparative Marketing Study" (Chapter 13); "Marketing Technology, Tasks, and Relationships" (Chapter 14); "A Model for Ethics in Marketing" (Chapter 15); "Are Domestic and International Marketing Dissimilar" (Chapter 16); and "The General Theory of Marketing" (Chapter 17).