Unravelling the Digital-Sustainability Connection: A Data-Driven Review of Global Research Trends

Abstract

This bibliometric study provides a quantitative overview of the digital transformation and sustainability research landscape, highlighting its rapid growth, key journals, and emerging themes, while also identifying critical gaps in interdisciplinary integration and regional disparities that future research should address. The paper also seeks to address the lack of quantitative assessment of global research trends in this area, which previous studies have often overlooked.The research employs a data-driven bibliometric analysis approach with a dataset drawn from the Web of Science. Keyword co-occurrence analysis was specifically used to highlight emerging topics. Co-occurrence networks and thematic mapping were applied to illustrate the structure and fragmentation of research within the domain. This quantitative bibliometric approach distinguishes the study from previous reviews that were predominantly qualitative.Research on digital transformation and sustainability has recently gained significant momentum. The journals Sustainability and Journal of Cleaner Production are key contributors to this growing body of literature. Emerging topics identified through keyword co-occurrence analysis include smart cities, circular economy, and green innovation. The research domain is quite fragmented, with distinct clusters focusing on theoretical frameworks, innovation, and performance metrics. Despite increasing literature, significant gaps persist, particularly in interdisciplinary integration, policy implementation strategies, and region-specific analysis. Future research should focus on sustainability models driven by AI, blockchain for green supply chains, and digital transformation applications in sustainable urban planning to enhance practical and theoretical significance.