Framing the evolution of corporate social responsibility as a discipline (1973–2018): A large-scale scientometric analysis

Using a scientometric approach, this study frames the evolution of corporate social responsibility (CSR) research over a period of 46 years. It carries out a statistical-historical analysis mapping the main topics, references, sources, and countries of publication emergent in the CSR research. We apply this combination of bibliometric analyses on a sample of 2,583 CSR studies derived from Scopus (1973–2018). These analyses illustrate the interdisciplinary character of CSR. Second, this study recognises numerous topics in the history of CSR research and demonstrates how these topics emerge, vanish, or become steady over time. Third, the patterns of evolution in terms of topics are reflected in scientific journal specialisation and country coauthorship collaborations. Finally, this research provides the latest evaluation on the state of the art in this field, highlighting the newest and hottest topics. By plotting out the evolution of CSR research, practical implications are identified.