Vol. 12 No. 1 (2026)
March

Articles

Seducing the crowd: An LDA literature review on language in crowdfunding

Published 2026-03-31

  • Anna Fornalska
    • ,
  • Michał Suchanek
    • ,
  • Joanna Adamska
    • ,
  • Paula Gorszczyńska
    • ,
  • Urszula Mrzygłód

Anna Fornalska
IMC Krems University of Applied Sciences

Michał Suchanek
University of Gdansk

Joanna Adamska
University of Gdansk

Paula Gorszczyńska
University of Gdansk

Urszula Mrzygłód
University of Gdansk

Abstract

Objective: As crowdfunding continues to gain traction worldwide as an alternative financing method for entrepreneurs and social initiatives, the language used in campaign communications has become a critical factor influencing funding outcomes. Therefore, understanding how linguistic elements affect backer engagement and campaign success constitutes an increasingly important research area. This article aims to identify the dominant themes and emerging trends in academic research concerning the role of language in crowdfunding. We applied latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) to systematically explore how scholars have investigated linguistic features in crowdfunding-related studies and how this area has evolved.

Research Design & Methods: We applied an LDA topic model to the dynamically growing body of literature on the aspects of language in crowdfunding campaigns to identify the key research topics and find the most current avenues of further research. It is a stochastic-based approach. Therefore, it fits well with the analysis of short blocks of text such as article abstracts. We considered 143 papers from Scopus published on the topic since 2013 to identify the key trends in the contemporary research on language in crowdfunding.

Findings: We identified seven key topics, including: (1) language in crowdfunding success, (2) entrepreneurial narratives, (3) emotional language in social/medical campaigns, (4) gender in crowdfunding, (5) branding and linguistic strategies, (6) values in crowdfunding, and (7) ethical considerations. The analysis shows temporal shifts in topic prevalence, highlighting growing interest in interdisciplinary themes such as gender and values, while general or ethical-focused research has declined over time.

Implications & Recommendations: The study revealed a shift from basic linguistic metrics to more detailed explorations of identity, ethics, and emotional appeal. It recommends that fundraisers and platforms tailor communication strategies to match backer expectations and influence persuasive narratives. Crowdfunding platforms may enhance user support by integrating language analysis tools and offering narrative-building guidance.

Contribution & Value Added: This is the first known study to apply LDA topic modelling to academic literature on language use in crowdfunding. It provides a structured, data-driven mapping of the field’s development and offers insights into how language shapes crowdfunding outcomes. It contributes to both the crowdfunding literature and interdisciplinary research, linking linguistics, psychology, marketing and finance, underlining the international applicability of these findings.

Keywords

language, crowdfunding, Latent Dirichlet Allocation, Natural Language Processing, topic modelling

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Author Biography

Anna Fornalska

PhD in Economics, professor at the IMC Krems University of Applied Sciences, Austria. Her research interests include alternative finance and socially sustainable development from the perspective of individual consumers and society as a whole.

Michał Suchanek

dr hab., associate professor at the University of Gdańsk, Poland. His research interests include transport economics, urban development and sustainability and evaluating policies related to transportation and their socio-economic effects.

Joanna Adamska

PhD, assistant professor at the University of Gdańsk, Poland. Her research interests include crowdfunding, alternative finance, social sustainability and community engagement.

Paula Gorszczyńska

PhD, assistant professor at the University of Gdańsk, Poland. Her research interests include linguistic and cognitive aspects of interpreting and translation, audio description, and crowdfunding discourse.

Urszula Mrzygłód

PhD, assistant professor at the University of Gdańsk, Poland. Her research interests include motivation to back crowdfunding and success factors in crowdfunding, as well as the dividend policy of companies listed on emerging stock markets.

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