ABSTRACT
Since the 1960s, research perspectives have emerged and expanded as different social science disciplines found new phenomena to explore. Event Studies, as an area of cross-disciplinary interest, illustrates this progression well. The subject has attracted a considerable body of research from a variety of disciplines, and is rapidly evolving into a discrete area of academic study. The research literature including many of the chapters in this Handbook points to the multi-faceted scope and role, and sometimes contentious outcome, of events. However, it could be argued that events form a somewhat elusive concept inasmuch as they may be macro or micro in scale, occur just once or on a regular cycle, be produced and funded by all manner of different actors, and may be commercial in focus or designed to fulfil other objectives. These multifarious scales, objectives, differences, stakeholders and critiques are noted throughout this Handbook, and form a challenging and fruitful area of research for the academic community. This chapter reviews the current issues associated with events research and future directions for development.
