A bibliometric analysis of economic growth-environmental sustainability nexus

Abstract

This study offers a comprehensive knowledge map of the relationship between economic growth and environmental sustainability based on an extensive analysis of articles published from 1990 to 2024. By applying bibliometric methods, the research addresses critical questions regarding publication trends, the influence of authors, institutions, countries, journals, and the most frequently cited articles. The findings reveal a dramatic 39-fold increase in the volume of studies from 2013 to 2024, with China, Turkey, and the United States leading in the number of publications. These results underscore the rising global awareness of the environmental impacts of economic growth, especially in rapidly developing industrialized nations. The study recommends international cooperation between countries with varying pollution levels to establish a foundation for policies that balance economic development with environmental protection while guiding future research in this field.