Sustainability: bibliometric analysis in the Web Of Science database

Abstract

The objective of this article is to perform a bibliometric analysis of the scientific production on sustainability in the Web of Science database. Bibliometrics is a quantitative analysis method for scientific research. The data produced by means of bibliometric studies measure the contribution of scientific knowledge derived from publications in certain areas. With the present research it was possible to identify the production of each year, the countries, the languages, the main keywords, the main thematic areas, the authors who published the most, and to identify the most relevant contributions. The work is justified because it deals with an interesting theme, which allows us to trace an overview of the scientific production on sustainability, serving as a parameter for new research in academia. As a data selection criterion, the terms "Sustainability OR Sustainability" were entered into the search fields. As a way to delimit the search, only the titles of articles in the period from 2017 to 2021 were considered, being analyzed 18,036 articles. The research identified a growth in scientific production dealing with sustainability. It found that the United States was the country that published the most; it identified the authors who produced the most and also identified the main researchers and their contributions to the sustainability theme. For further research, it is suggested that a study be conducted that covers a longer period of time, enabling a greater understanding of the scientific production that deals with sustainability.