Socially responsible human resource management and employee behavior: A 1998–2025 bibliometric analysis
-
DOIhttp://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.24(2).2026.16
-
Article InfoVolume 24 2026, Issue #2, pp. 226-239
- 10 Views
-
2 Downloads
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
Type of the article: Research Article
Abstract
Growing stakeholder expectations regarding ethical employment and sustainability have increased academic interest in socially responsible human resource management (SRHRM) as a mechanism influencing employee behavior and organizational outcomes. This study performs a bibliometric analysis of 112 English-language publications indexed in the Scopus database from 1998 to 2025, using Bibliometrix and VOSviewer to assess publication performance, citation patterns, geographical distribution, and thematic relationships. The results show significant growth in SRHRM research since 2016, with publication output peaking in 2024, confirming SRHRM as a distinct research stream. Six key thematic clusters are identified. Sustainable and responsible HRM practices and employee citizenship outcomes cluster focuses on how HRM practices influence behaviors like organizational citizenship. Employee attitudes, ethical leadership, and workplace behavior cluster examines ethical leadership’s role in shaping employee attitudes. CSR-oriented HRM systems and organizational performance cluster explores CSR-driven HRM systems and their impact on performance and employee outcomes. Strategic sustainability, work engagement, and person–organization fit cluster investigates sustainability-oriented HR strategies and employee engagement. Leadership, organizational culture, and workforce context cluster explore how leadership and culture influence SRHRM practices. Responsible leadership in emerging economy contexts cluster focuses on leadership in emerging economies, especially Vietnam. The findings demonstrate increasing integration of SRHRM with sustainability and ESG perspectives, reflecting the global, interdisciplinary nature of this research. These results highlight the growing strategic importance of responsible HRM practices in shaping employee attitudes and provide a foundation for advancing future research in sustainable HRM.
- Keywords
-
JEL Classification (Paper profile tab)M12, M14, J24, D23
-
References24
-
Tables4
-
Figures7
-
- Figure 1. Research procedure
- Figure 2. Number of documents and citations
- Figure 3. Countries’ scientific production
- Figure 4. Network visualization map of the co-authorship by countries
- Figure 5. Statistics by the type of published documents
- Figure 6. The network of co-occurring keywords
- Figure 7. Keyword co-occurrence evolution
-
- Table 1. Descriptive statistics of the bibliometric dataset
- Table 2. Journals with the highest number of publications on SRHRM and employee behavior
- Table 3. Top ten studies with the highest citations
- Table 4. Keyword clusters and associated research themes
-
- Abdelmotaleb, M., & Saha, S. K. (2020). Socially responsible human resource management, perceived organizational morality, and employee well-being. Public Organization Review, 20(3), 385-399.
- Barrena-Martínez, J., López-Fernández, M., & Romero-Fernández, P. M. (2017a). Socially responsible human resource policies and practices: Academic and professional validation. European Research on Management and Business Economics, 23(1), 55-61.
- Barrena-Martínez, J., López-Fernández, M., & Romero-Fernández, P. M. (2017b). Towards a configuration of socially responsible human resource management policies and practices: findings from an academic consensus. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 30(17), 2544-2580.
- Casimiro Almeida, M. G., & Coelho, A. F. M. (2019). The antecedents of corporate reputation and image and their impacts on employee commitment and performance: The moderating role of CSR. Corporate Reputation Review, 22(1), 10-25.
- Celma, D., Martínez-García, E., & Raya, J. M. (2018). Socially responsible HR practices and their effects on employees’ well-being: Empirical evidence from Catalonia, Spain. European Research on Management and Business Economics, 24(2), 82-89.
- Glänzel, W., & Moed, H. F. (2002). Journal impact measures in bibliometric research. Scientometrics, 53(2), 171-193.
- He, J., & Kim, H. (2021). The effect of socially responsible HRM on organizational citizenship behavior for the environment: A proactive motivation model. Sustainability, 13(14), Article 7958.
- Jamali, D. R., El Dirani, A. M., & Harwood, I. A. (2015). Exploring human resource management roles in corporate social responsibility: The CSR–HRM co-creation model. Business Ethics, the Environment & Responsibility, 24(2), 125-143.
- Jia, J., Liu, H., Chin, T., & Hu, D. (2018). The continuous mediating effects of GHRM on employees’ green passion via transformational leadership and green creativity. Sustainability, 10(9), Article 3237.
- Lombardi, R., Manfredi, S., Cuozzo, B., & Palmaccio, M. (2020). The profitable relationship among corporate social responsibility and human resource management: A new sustainable key factor. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 27(6), 2657-2667.
- Luu, T. T. (2021). Socially responsible human resource practices and hospitality employee outcomes. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 33(3), 757-789.
- Newman, A., Miao, Q., Hofman, P. S., & Zhu, C. J. (2016). The impact of socially responsible human resource management on employees’ organizational citizenship behaviour: The mediating role of organizational identification. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 27(4), 440-455.
- Nie, D., Lämsä, A. M., & Pučėtaitė, R. (2018). Effects of responsible human resource management practices on female employees’ turnover intentions. Business Ethics, the Environment & Responsibility, 27(1), 29-41.
- Orlitzky, M., & Swanson, D. L. (2006). Socially responsible human resource management: Charting new territory. In J. R. Deckop (Ed.), Human resource management ethics (pp. 3-25). Information Age Publishing.
- Sarvaiya, H., Eweje, G., & Arrowsmith, J. (2018). The roles of HRM in CSR: Strategic partnership or operational support? Journal of Business Ethics, 153(3), 825-837.
- Shan, S., Fu, S., & Zheng, L. (2017). Corporate sexual equality and firm performance. Strategic Management Journal, 38(9), 1812-1826.
- Shen, J., & Benson, J. (2016). When CSR is a social norm: How socially responsible human resource management affects employee work behavior. Journal of Management, 42(6), 1723-1746.
- Shen, J., & Zhu, C. J. (2011). Effects of socially responsible human resource management on employee organizational commitment. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 22(15), 3020-3035.
- Sypniewska, B., Baran, M., & Kłos, M. (2023). Work engagement and employee satisfaction in the practice of sustainable human resource management – Based on the study of Polish employees. International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, 19, 1069-1100.
- Waltman, L., van Eck, N. J., & Noyons, E. C. M. (2010). A unified approach to mapping and clustering of bibliometric networks. Journal of Informetrics, 4(4), 629-635.
- Zhang, M., Di Fan, D., & Zhu, C. J. (2014). High-performance work systems, corporate social performance and employee outcomes: Exploring the missing links. Journal of Business Ethics, 120(3), 423-435.
- Zhao, H., & Zhou, Q. (2021). Socially responsible human resource management and hotel employee organizational citizenship behavior for the environment: A social cognitive perspective. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 95, Article 102749.
- Zhao, H., Chen, Y., & Liu, W. (2023). Socially responsible human resource management and employee moral voice: Based on self-determination theory. Journal of Business Ethics, 183(3), 929-946.
- Zhao, H., Zhou, Q., He, P., & Jiang, C. (2021). How and when does socially responsible HRM affect employees’ organizational citizenship behaviors toward the environment? Journal of Business Ethics, 169(2), 371-385.


