Half a Century of Research on Workplace Well-Being: A Bibliometric Analysis of the Literature, Thematic Evolution, and Scientific Structure

Abstract

In a context characterized by increasing instability in global environments and evolving employee expectations, organizations are compelled to rethink managerial practices and place greater emphasis on employee health and well-being. The purpose of this article is to conduct a bibliometric analysis of the literature to explore the major research themes and trends related to workplace well-being. This study draws on a final corpus of 8,301 documents indexed in Scopus, covering the period 1972–2025, and analyzed using the Bibliometrix software. The methodology relies on established bibliometric techniques, including the assessment of annual scientific production, geographical and institutional distribution, conceptual structure through keyword co-occurrence, and thematic analysis. The findings reveal sustained growth in the field, with an average annual increase of 8.35% and a marked acceleration after 2015. The most frequently identified themes include workplace well-being, employee satisfaction, burnout, stress, and work engagement. The analysis also highlights a structured scientific network composed of 19,640 authors and a corpus derived from 2,062 sources. Overall, the results provide a structured mapping of the field and constitute a valuable analytical framework for guiding future research. They further underscore the need to continue investigating new strategies and advancements in the promotion of workplace well-being.