  This study reviews the literature on virtual academic conferences, which have
gained significant attention due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted a
scoping review, analyzing 147 documents available up to October 5th, 2021. We
categorized this literature, identified main themes, examined theoretical
approaches, evaluated empirical findings, and synthesized the advantages and
disadvantages of virtual academic conferences. We find that the existing
literature on virtual academic conferences is mainly descriptive and lacks a
solid theoretical framework for studying the phenomenon. Despite the rapid
growth of the literature documenting and discussing virtual conferencing
induced by the pandemic, the understanding of the phenomenon is limited. We
provide recommendations for future research on academic virtual conferences:
their impact on research productivity, quality, and collaboration; relations to
social, economic, and geopolitical inequalities in science; and their
environmental aspects. We stress the need for further research encompassing the
development of a theoretical framework that will guide empirical studies.
