MAPPING THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE IN VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENTS: INTEGRATED BIBLIOMETRIC INSIGHTS FROM BIBLIOMERGE, VOSVIEWER CITESPACE

Abstract

This study provides a bibliometric review of research on customer experience in the context of virtual technologies, with particular attention to immersive technologies, such as virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and metaverse-related applications. Drawing on bibliographic data collected from the Web of Science and Scopus databases, the study analyzes 931 publications published between 2016 and 2026. To ensure data consistency and reliability, bibliographic records were merged and cleaned using BiblioMerge, while CiteSpace and VOSviewer were employed to visualize publication trends, keyword co-occurrence, citation bursts, thematic clusters, and country collaboration networks. The findings reveal a rapid growth of scholarly interest in immersive customer experience research, particularly since 2020. The core themes cluster into three major areas: (1) VR/AR application contexts in retail and service environments, (2) consumer behavior and experience-related outcomes such as purchase intention, trust, and engagement, and (3) technological and managerial challenges, including privacy, usability, and adoption barriers. By mapping the intellectual structure of this domain, the study contributes a comprehensive overview of current research patterns and offers a foundation for future investigations into the role of immersive technologies in shaping customer experience and digital retail transformation.