Mapping a Decade of Research Linking Board Gender Diversity to ESG Outcomes

A new bibliometric review has mapped how scientists have studied the relationship between board gender diversity, environmental, social and governance (ESG) outcomes, and corporate sustainability. The review, published in Discover Sustainability, analyzed 142 scientific papers indexed in Scopus that were published between 2016 and 2025, offering an integrated research map of this rapidly growing field.

The authors, led by Sushma Sharma, combined conventional narrative content analysis with quantitative bibliometric methods, including bibliometric analysis, bibliographic coupling and keyword co-occurrence analysis. The document-level bibliographic coupling produced six distinct clusters among 128 interrelated documents, while 14 documents remained disconnected from the main connected component. In a separate analysis, an examination of 51 retained keywords yielded five thematic clusters, giving researchers a structured view of how the field has organized itself conceptually.

The mapped literature covers five broad topic areas: ESG performance and disclosure, governance and board oversight, legitimacy of stakeholders, sustainability and financial outcomes, and institutional context. A notable conceptual contribution of the review is its distinction between ESG performance and ESG disclosure, two constructs that the authors separate explicitly in describing the scientific discourse around sustainability transformation.

Across the reviewed studies, the authors report that findings frequently show positive associations between board gender diversity and ESG-related outcomes. However, the strength and direction of these associations vary with how outcomes are measured, the institutional setting, the industry under study, and the research design employed. This variability matters for interpretation, because reported associations in the reviewed literature do not by themselves establish that adding women to boards causes improvements in ESG outcomes.

As a bibliometric review, the study describes the scientific discourse rather than testing hypotheses about diversity or ESG outcomes directly. Its scope is limited to Scopus-indexed papers from 2016 to 2025, and the analysis reflects the literature available at the time of review. The authors state that the study contributes through an integrated research map, clearer distinctions among sustainability-related constructs, and a cluster-linked research agenda intended to guide future studies. By tying research themes to the identified clusters, the review positions gender diversity and ESG as an established but still evolving research nexus within the broader study of sustainability transformation.

Subject of Research: Bibliometric review of research on board gender diversity, ESG outcomes and corporate sustainability

Article Title: A bibliometric review of the gender diversity and ESG nexus in sustainability transformation

Article References: Sharma, S., Dahiya, S., Kuhar, D., Mishra, A., & Siwach, P. (2026). A bibliometric review of the gender diversity and ESG nexus in sustainability transformation. Discover Sustainability. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43621-026-05094-5

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1007/s43621-026-05094-5

Keywords: bibliometric review, gender diversity, ESG, corporate sustainability, board governance, ESG disclosure, Scopus, sustainability transformation, bibliographic coupling, keyword co-occurrence, bibliometric, review