Psychosocial risks and performance: A bibliometric and visualization analysis

Abstract

Over the past few decades, organizational changes have introduced several risks in the workplace, especially those affecting psychological health, such as stress, burnout, depression, violence, harassment, and musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), collectively known as “psychosocial risks” (PSR). Their presence has become a major concern for modern organizations due to their negative impact on employee well-being and organizational performance. Consequently, the literature on psychosocial risks and performance has significantly expanded. In this context, this article presents a bibliometric and visualization analysis conducted using VOSviewer software to illustrate and evaluate scientific output on the topic of psychosocial risk and performance. To conduct our study, we followed a clear methodology, starting with developing a specific query in the Web of Science (WoS) core collection database by selecting the appropriate keywords. We then applied inclusion and exclusion selection criteria to ensure that only pertinent articles were included. This process resulted in 93 scientific articles published between 1999 and 2024. The results of our analysis show that Leka Stavroula, Bergh Linn Iren Vestly, Jain Aditya, and Zwetsloot Gerard are the most prolific authors in this field, and that Safety Science is the journal with the highest number of published articles. In terms of countries, Spain, England, Italy, Australia, the Netherlands, and the United States are the countries that have made the most contributions. Finally, as part of a keywords co-occurrence analysis, five research areas have been identified. Overall, this study offers a comprehensive overview of research on psychosocial risk and performance and serves as a foundation for future studies.