Behavior Change Theories and Models Within Health Belief Model Research: A Five-Decade Holistic Bibliometric Analysis

The health belief model (HBM) has gained significant scholarly attention over the past five decades. This study aims to provide a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of the HBM research landscape to reveal its evolving trends and impact. The analysis utilized data from the Scopus database to explore publication patterns, influential sources and researchers, international collaborations, and thematic trends in the HBM-related literature. The findings demonstrate a substantial growth in HBM publications, with a peak of more than 11% in 2022-2023. The United States, Iran, China, the United Kingdom, and Australia are the most productive countries, and prominent HBM researchers include Lau JTF, Champion VL, and Jeihooni AK. Thematic analysis reveals a shift from broader topics of HBM to more specific areas, such as COVID-19, health behavior, and digital health interventions. The current study highlights the sustained and growing interest in HBM, its diverse applications, and the collaborative efforts of researchers worldwide to develop and refine this influential theoretical framework in public health and behavioral science.