Corporate Social Responsibility in Banking: A Comprehensive Bibliometric Analysis

Corporate social responsibility is a crucial aspect that plays a pivotal role in the banking sector by fostering trust and brand reputation, embracing sustainable and ethical practices. Corporate social responsibility in the banking sector contributes to community development, mitigating societal issues and maintaining the stability of banks, integrating organizational goals with the expectations of stakeholders. Therefore, the objective of this study is to track the trends and developments in corporate social responsibility within the banking sector and to provide a pathway for future investigation in the study areas. A bibliometric analysis on corporate social responsibility in the banking sector was conducted utilizing R Studio, Biblioshiny, and VOS Viewer software. Furthermore, this study compiled 298 data points extracted from the Scopus database, covering the period from 2003 to 2024. The study’s findings showed a growing trend in annual scientific publications, with the highest average citation per document in 2010. The leading keywords identified as emerging areas of research include corporate social responsibility, banking, and the banking sector, with the Sustainability (Switzerland) Journal reflecting the highest contribution, including the highest impact. Similarly, the most relevant affiliation found was Bucharest University of Economic Studies, with the highest production. Moreover, the leading countries in research article publication were China, India, Spain, Pakistan, and Malaysia. Additionally, the most globally cited document was by Jizi, and most local references were to Bourgeois. The study highlights existing trends in the field of corporate social responsibility that are on the rise, reflecting a growing interest in the field and making significant contributions to the existing literature, while also demonstrating numerous opportunities for future research. This study identifies progressive trends and directions in the field of corporate social responsibility in the banking sector, encompassing two and a half decades of research work based on bibliometric analysis, which ultimately lays the foundation for future research.