# A Systematic Literature Review on Blockchain Governance

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2105.05460 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2105.05460/

## Key facts

- Cited by 4 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 12 May 2021.

## Built on by (most cited first, 4 of 4)

- [Is Your AI Truly Yours? Leveraging Blockchain for Copyrights, Provenance, and Lineage](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.06077/) (2024)
- [Challenges and Solutions in AI for All](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2307.10600/) (2023)
- [Achieving Unanimous Consensus Through Multi-Agent Deliberation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.02128/) (2025)
- [Distributed Trust Through the Lens of Software Architecture](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2306.08056/) (2023)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Blockchain has been increasingly used as a software component to enable decentralisation in software architecture for a variety of applications. Blockchain governance has received considerable attention to ensure the safe and appropriate use and evolution of blockchain, especially after the Ethereum DAO attack in 2016. However, there are no systematic efforts to analyse existing governance solutions. To understand the state-of-the-art of blockchain governance, we conducted a systematic literature review with 37 primary studies. The extracted data from primary studies are synthesised to answer identified research questions. The study results reveal several major findings: 1) governance can improve the adaptability and upgradability of blockchain, whilst the current studies neglect broader ethical responsibilities as the objectives of blockchain governance; 2) governance is along with the development process of a blockchain platform, while ecosystem-level governance process is missing, and; 3) the responsibilities and capabilities of blockchain stakeholders are briefly discussed, whilst the decision rights, accountability, and incentives of blockchain stakeholders are still under studied. We provide actionable guidelines for academia and practitioners to use throughout the lifecycle of blockchain, and identify future trends to support researchers in this area.