Trends, Collaborations and Perspectives in the Study of Organizational Climate and Job Satisfaction: A Bibliometric and Scientometric Analysis

Abstract

Organizational climate (OC) and job satisfaction (JS) are constructs that have been studied for more than five decades. However, the results to date are not sufficient to generalize conclusions across cultures, countries and sectors. To contribute to the development of theory and practice, this study analyzes publication trends through a bibliographic review of publications indexed in the Web of Science (WoS) database between 1975 and 2023, using bibliometric and scientometric techniques. This review synthesizes the accumulated knowledge and reveals significant gaps that need to be addressed, highlighting the weak articulation of research in general; the low scientific production in regions such as India, Southeast Asia, Latin America; the overrepresentation of the health sector in the specialized literature. These findings seek to motivate researchers to fill gaps in scientific production and help managers and administrators to strengthen practices that improve the environmental conditions of workers. The limitations of this study are related to the characteristics of quantitative bibliographic studies and the inclusion of only two constructs related to people’s well-being at work, which suggests that future research could incorporate other variables such as emotional intelligence, leadership or organizational citizenship behavior.

1. Introduction

Organizations around the world face challenges such as intense competition, due to skilled employees, high employee attrition rates, the ongoing struggle to attract high-level talent (Mujajati et al., 2024). There is a consensus among researchers that environmental conditions and interpersonal relationships have a positive effect on both performance and the reduction in negative effects, such as stress and turnover (e.g., Rožman & Štrukelj, 2021; Alwali & Alwali, 2022; Lee & Kim, 2023). However, there is still no consensus on the most influential causal relationships in job satisfaction (JS), and Organizational Climate (OC) remains one of the most consistent antecedents (Li et al., 2020; Santana & Pérez-Rico, 2023; Lintanga & Rathakrishnan, 2024). Increasing scientific output related to OC and JS requires detailed and organized information that facilitates the understanding and description of the scientific field. Therefore, we propose to review the scientific production on these constructs in publications indexed in the Web of Science (WoS) database between 1975 and 2023, using bibliometric and scientometric techniques. Therefore, this study seeks to answer the research question: What are the publication trends in OC and JS research? To answer this question, we look at the authors, countries, institutions, scientific journals that generate the most knowledge about OC and JS. The relevance of this work lies in the fact that it not only describes the scientific production in the field of research on OC and JS, but also aims to serve as a reference source for scholars in the identification of future lines of research in this area.

2. Theoretical Framework

2.1. Organizational Climate

Organizational climate (OC) is a higher-order construct, it is temporal, subjective, often subject to manipulation by those who wield power or influence (Denison, 1996), which can be measured through a set of dimensions or factors, which vary according to the authors and, at the same time, often overlap (Anderson & West, 1998; Patterson et al., 2005; D’Amato, 2023). Meanwhile, for Lee and Kim (2023), it refers to employees’ perceptions of work–life balance, burnout, emotional work, job security, professional development, learning within the organization. Therefore, it is possible to identify a diversity of economic sectors, types of organizations, cultures, relationships in which OC has been studied (e.g., Mozgovoy, 2021; Viđak et al., 2023; Xia et al., 2024), leading to the development of models with multiple dimensions and objectives.

For Edmondson and Bransby (2023), OC cannot be conceived as an end, as there is a risk of overdoing the construction, which can distract people from the true mission of the organization. Therefore, its evolution has implied that the models developed in the last decade are associated with a “work climate for”, among which the following stand out: Creativity/Innovation, Psychological Safety and Trust (Andersson et al., 2020; Tan et al., 2020; Contreras et al., 2021).

2.2. Job Satisfaction

Job satisfaction (JS) refers to an individual’s emotional reactions and subjective attitudes in work situations, or situations in which their individual needs are met (Zhang & Wang, 2021). Satisfaction of desired needs within the work environment, happiness or rewarding emotional responses to working conditions, the value or equity of work are also considered (Liu et al., 2016). JS has been related, among other aspects, to OC, leadership style, commitment, absenteeism (Eliyana et al., 2019; Stamolampros et al., 2019; Xia et al., 2024), using various models, adaptations, scales to measure it, which can be composite or global (Bolos & Zelazny, 2022).

2.3. Relationship Between OC and JS

The relationship between Organizational Climate (OC) and Job Satisfaction (JS) has been widely studied and consistently validated across various organizational contexts. OC refers to the shared perceptions of organizational policies, practices, procedures, which shape employees’ experiences and attitudes at work. A positive climate fosters trust, support, clarity in roles, which are key antecedents of job satisfaction.

Schneider and Snyder (1975) were among the first to empirically examine this relationship, demonstrating its impact on productivity and turnover in insurance agencies. Subsequent studies have confirmed this link in diverse settings such as universities, service organizations, non-profits (Li et al., 2020; Federico et al., 2023; Lintanga & Rathakrishnan, 2024). For instance, Xia et al. (2024), in a study of Chinese kindergartens, found that a favorable OC significantly and positively influences JS, with work stress and emotional labor acting as mediating variables.

These findings suggest that OC not only affects JS directly but also interacts with other psychological and organizational factors. Understanding this dynamic is essential for designing interventions that improve employee well-being and performance.

3. Materials and Methods

This research is descriptive and conclusive, with a longitudinal component (Malhotra, 2004), following a non-experimental bibliographic research design (Campo-Ternera et al., 2018). It is based on a bibliometric and scientometric analysis, which evaluates the quantity and quality of scientific works through various indicators, making it a fundamental scientific tool (e.g., Meneghini & Packer, 2010; Glänzel, 2012; Toro Jaramillo, 2017; Araya-Castillo et al., 2021). This approach improves the understanding and description of the scientific field through systematic studies that provide consistent and reliable synthesis and analysis (e.g., Expósito-López & Olmedo-Moreno, 2020; Rubiales-Núñez et al., 2024).

The methodology employed involves bibliometric analysis, an area of scientific research that has developed rapidly and has been applied in several fields due to its effectiveness in assessing the merits of a specific thematic area or journal (Shang et al., 2015; Wang et al., 2020; Hernández-Perlines et al., 2023). This methodology is combined with a scientometric analysis, defined by Nalimov and Mulchenko (1971) as the development of quantitative methods to investigate the development of science as a process of diffusion. Key topics addressed by scientometrics include measuring research quality and impact, understanding citation processes, mapping scientific fields, and using indicators in research policy and management (Mingers & Leydesdorff, 2015).

This study relies exclusively on the Web of Science (WoS) database, selected for its global recognition as a rigorous and comprehensive source of scientific literature. The search spans from 1975 to 2023 and includes all eight indexes of the WoS Core Collection (SSCI, ESCI, SCI, BKCI-SSH, A&HCI, CPCI-SSH, BKCI-S, CPCI-S), ensuring broad disciplinary coverage. WoS was preferred over other databases, such as Scopus, due to its indexing quality, citation tracking capabilities, and significant overlap in journal coverage.

Furthermore, WoS is one of the most influential and widely used sources for retrieving scientific information. It offers high search accessibility and provides detailed metadata on authorship, publication venues, and citation networks (Granda-Orive et al., 2013). Its inclusion of multiple indexes—such as the Social Science Citation Index (SSCI) and the Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI)—allows access to both established and emerging research (Vega-Muñoz et al., 2020). Focusing on WoS-indexed research ensures that only peer-reviewed and high-impact publications are considered, in line with previous studies in the field (Keupp et al., 2012; Dada, 2018; Kauppi et al., 2018; Velt et al., 2020; Hernández-Perlines et al., 2023). Book chapters were excluded to avoid duplication, as many articles are later republished in edited volumes, which could bias the analysis.

This research analyzes the most relevant indicators related to the concepts of Organizational Climate (OC) and Job Satisfaction (JS), considering all languages and their various meanings. The initial search yielded 2390 results, limited to journal articles and excluding other types of documents such as book chapters and editorial material. Ultimately, 2228 documents were selected, which have been cited a total of 68,697 times.

The bibliometric indicators used for the analysis include articles, citations, journals, institutions, authors, and countries. In addition, scientometric analyses were performed to examine co-authorships between authors, institutions, and countries, as well as the co-occurrence of keywords related to the concepts of OC and JS. This approach allows for the creation of a detailed map of key concepts based on frequency data and their respective clusters. The results were analyzed using social network analysis based on graph theory, with VOSviewer software version 1.6.20.

VOSviewer was selected due to its methodological robustness, efficiency in handling large datasets, and superior graphical performance compared to other tools. It generates distance-based maps where proximity reflects the strength of relationships, offering a coherent and adaptable analytical framework. Its compatibility with WoS allows direct data import, reducing the likelihood of manual errors or data duplication. While other tools such as CiteSpace or Bibliometrix also support bibliometric mapping, they often require additional steps or programming skills (e.g., in R VOSviewer 1.6.20) to produce visualizations. In contrast, VOSviewer provides an intuitive interface and produces high-quality, professional-grade outputs with strong methodological support, making it the most suitable choice for this study.

The WoS search, updated as of 5 April 2024, was conducted using the following query:

((((TS = (“Organizational climate”)) OR TS = (“Psychological climate”)) OR TS = (“Organizational climate”)) AND TS = (“Job satisfaction”)) OR TS = (“Job satisfaction”), with document type restricted to Articles, and indexes including SSCI, ESCI, SCI-EXPANDED, BKCI-SSH, A&HCI, CPCI-SSH, BKCI-S, CPCI-S, covering the time frame 1975–2023. The term TS refers to the search of the concept in the title, abstract, and author keywords of each article included in the database.

4. Results

After searching for articles related to the concepts of ‘OC’ and ‘JS’, from 1975 to 2023, 2228 articles were identified during this period. As for search concepts, five papers were published in 1975, indicating that no papers related to these concepts were published in WoS-indexed journals prior to that year. The total number of citations for all published articles is 68,697, showing an exponential growth described in equation y = 4 × 10⁻⁷³e^0.085x, with an R² = 90.2%. Therefore, we can conclude that steady exponential growth has been achieved, highlighting the growing critical mass of research on this topic (see Figure 1).

Figure 1 shows a linear growth until 1990, after which a slight increase begins, continuing until 2017. From that point on, exponential growth is observed, peaking in 2022 with 197 articles. It should be noted that the last ten years represent 45.7% of scientific production, while the last five years represent 16.9% of the total number of articles. This difference highlights the growing interest in these topics over the past three decades. Figure 2 shows that the number of citations per year for ‘OC’ and ‘JS’ has followed a positive trend from the beginning, reaching its highest number of citations in 2023 with 8669 citations.

Table 1. General citation structure.

Number of Citations	Number of Articles	% of Items
More than 1000	1	0.04%
More than 500 less than 1000	9	0.40%
More than 250 less than 500	23	1.03%
More than 100 less than 250	120	5.39%
More than 50 less than 100	193	8.66%
less than 50	1.670	74.96%
0 Quotes	212	9.52%
Total	2.228	100.00%

Fountain: Own based on data from Web of Science (2024).

presents the citation rate of the articles. A total of 68,697 citations have been made on this topic. The analysis shows that 212 articles have not been cited, which represents 9.52% of the total. In addition, only one article has more than 1000 citations.

Table 2. Articles within the most influential scientific production.

R	Authors	Year	Title	Magazine	TC
1	Anderson, NR; Oeste, MA	1998	Climate Measurement for Innovation in Working Groups: Development and Validation of the Team’s Climate Inventory	Journal of Organizational Behavior	1.085
2	Hoegl, M; Gemuenden, HG (Hoegl & Gemuenden, 2001)	2001	Quality of teamwork and success of innovative projects: a theoretical concept and empirical evidence	Organization Science	852
3	Denison, Dominican Republic	1996	What is the difference between organizational culture and organizational climate? A native’s view on a decade of paradigm wars	Management Review Academy	823
4	Liden, RC; Wayne, SJ; Sparrow, RT	2000	An examination of the mediating role of psychological empowerment in the relationships between work, interpersonal relationships, and work outcomes	Journal of Applied Psychology	789
5	Bloom, Nicolás; Liang, James; Roberts, John; Ying, Zhichun Jenny	2015	Does working from home work? Evidence from a Chinese experiment	Quarterly Journal of Economics	597
6	Fitzgerald, LF; Drasgow, F; Hulin, CL; Gelfand, MJ; Magley, VJ	1997	Background and consequences of sexual harassment in organizations: a test of an integrated model	Journal of Applied Psychology	569
7	Seibert, SE; Plata, SR; Randolph, WA	2004	Taking Empowerment to the Next Level: A Multi-Tiered Model of Empowerment, Performance, and Satisfaction	Journal of the Academy of Management	563
8	Dumont, Jenny; Shen, Jie; Deng, Xin	2017	Effects of Green Human Resource Management Practices on Employee Green Behavior in the Workplace: The Role of Psychological Green Climate and Employees’ Green Values	Human Resource Management	554
9	Willness, Chelsea R.; Acero, Muelles; Lee, Kibeom	2007	A meta-analysis of the background and consequences of sexual harassment in the workplace	Staff Psychology	546
10	Spreitzer, gerente general; Kizilos, MA; Nason, SW	1997	A dimensional analysis of the relationship between psychological empowerment and effectiveness, satisfaction, and tension	Management Journal	508

lists the 10 articles considered most influential based on the total number of citations per article, which together represent 10.1% of the total citations. This indicates a moderate concentration of references relative to the total number of articles related to ‘OC’ and ‘JS’.

As for the main articles within the set of 2228 articles identified by WoS, those with a high Hirsch index or h-index stand out (Bornmann & Hans-Dieter, 2007). The h-index favors authors with long careers who consistently publish work that has an above-average lasting impact. Of the articles found, 116 exceed 116 citations, which makes them the publications with the greatest impact in the entire group studied. In particular, an article by experts in organizational psychology, management and leadership, Anderson and West (1998), stands out. It represents 1.58% of the total citations on the subject, with 1085 citations. Published by the Journal of Organizational Behavior (Q2) by Wiley & Sons Ltd., New Jersey, United States this article presents the development and validation of the Team Climate Inventory (TCI) as an effective tool for measuring and promoting innovation climate within working groups.

Among the 2228 articles published in WoS on the concepts ‘OC’ and ‘JS’, 7067 authors are recognized for their research, either as sole authors or as co-authors. The concentration of citations is relatively low, as evidenced by the fact that the 10 most influential authors account for 14.77% of the total citations.

According to the data in

Table 3. The most influential authors in ‘OC’ and ‘JS’.

R	Author’s Name	Institution	TP-OC	TC-OC	%	AND	TP-A	TC-A	T116
1	Laschinger, Heather	Universidad de Western Ontario	11	2.027	2.95%	63	124	11.456	7
2	Shamian, Judith	International Council of Nurses	6	1.390	2.02%	22	61	4.390	5
3	Oeste, Michael	Lancaster University	3	1.449	2.11%	48	106	11.236	5
4	Anderson, Nicolás	University of Alabama, Birmingham	1	1.085	1.58%	21	69	3.963	1
5	Cuaresma, Robert W.	University of Maryland, University Park	12	956	1.39%	61	160	17.889	2
6	Finegan, Joan	Western University	4	927	1.35%	19	22	2.491	4
7	Aarons, Gregory	University of California San Diego	9	727	1.06%	54	202	10.668	3
8	Vallerand, Robert	University of Quebec in Montreal	5	543	0.79%	84	267	29.165	3
9	Fouquereau, Evelyne	University of Tours	6	520	0.76%	21	56	1.565	2
10	The guild, Nicolás	University of Tours	6	520	0.76%	35	142	3.615	2

Source: Authors’ elaboration based on data from Web of Science (2024).

, the most influential author is Professor Heather Laschinger of the University of Western Ontario, who has published 11 articles on ‘OC’ and ‘JS’, receiving 2027 citations, or 2.95% of the total citations. Seven of his articles are among the 116 most influential articles, according to the h-index in vector search. Professor Laschinger is recognized for her pioneering work in the development and validation of instruments to assess the work environment in healthcare, as well as for her advocacy for leadership practices that promote JS and staff retention in healthcare settings. The second most influential author is researcher Judith Shamian, a leading figure in nursing and global health. As President of the International Council of Nurses (ICN), she has championed the critical role of nurses in providing quality healthcare around the world. Its six articles have garnered 1390 citations, placing them among the most influential. The remaining influential authors on the topic of ‘OC’ and ‘JS’ are detailed in Table 3.

On the other hand, the total number of articles developed and published serves as another metric to assess the contribution of different authors to the generation of knowledge in the search vector. While these authors are not always the most influential, their contributions are significant in terms of advancing the topic in various contexts and approaches. For this reason,

Table 4. The most productive authors ‘OC’ and ‘JS’.

R	Author’s Name	University	TP-OC	TC-OC	PC-OC	% Tt	H-A	TP-A	TC-A
1	Cuaresma, Robert W.	University of Maryland, University Park	12	956	79.67	0.54%	61	160	17.889
2	Burke, Ronald J	York University—Canada	11	299	27.18	0.49%	36	231	4.466
3	Laschinger, Heather	Universidad de Western Ontario	11	2.027	184.27	0.49%	63	124	11.456
4	Poghosyan, Lusine	Columbia University	11	299	27.18	0.49%	26	156	2.953
5	Aarons, Gregory	University of California San Diego	9	727	80.78	0.40%	54	202	10.668
6	Shamian, Judith	International Council of Nurses	6	1.390	231.67	0.27%	22	61	4.390
7	Büssing A	Technical University of Munich	6	95	15.83	0.27%	4	4	138
8	Fouquereau, Evelyne	University of Tours	6	520	86.67	0.27%	21	56	1.565
9	The guild, Nicolás	University of Tours	6	520	86.67	0.27%	35	142	3.615
10	Hirsch, Oliver	University of Applied Sciences FOM	6	39	6.50	0.27%	17	60	966
		Total of the set	72	4.962	68.92	3.23%	35

Source: Authors’ elaboration based on data from Web of Science (2024).

is presented, detailing the authors who have published at least six articles related to ‘OC’ and ‘JS’. It includes the number of articles published on the topic, the total citations, the average number of citations, the articles published on the topic, the total number of citations of the articles, the average number of citations, the percentage of the total articles published, the author’s h-index, the total number of publications and citations of the author registered on the WoS platform as of January 2024.

Table 4 presents 10 authors who have published at least six articles related to ‘OC’ and ‘JS’. Notably, six of the most productive authors are also among the most influential in terms of citations. Among these authors are Professor Laschinger and Professor Shamian, who rank third and sixth in productivity, respectively, but rank first and second in influence.

In relation to the previous paragraphs, Figure 3 presents a graph that analyzes the co-authorships between the key authors in the field of ‘OC’ and ‘JS’. Articles were processed using VOSviewer software, and groups with at least four articles were selected. The software identifies 20 clusters that are interconnected, which are detailed in

Table 5. Co-authorship clusters for scientific production.

Cluster 1 (5) –Red	Cluster 2 (4) –Green	Cluster 3 (3) –Blue	Cluster 4 (3) Yellow	Cluster 5 (6) Purple
Brown, Steven D.	Fouquereau, Evelyne	Adarkwah, Charles (2)	Finegan, j (2)	Burke, RI (1)
Duffy, Ryan d.	The guild, Nicolás	Hirsch, Oliver (2)	Laschinger, hks (2)	Greenglass, er (1)
Cuaresma, Robert w. (4)	Philippe, Federico I.	Labenz, Joachim (2)	Shamian, j (2)
Sheu, Hung-bin	Vallerand, Robert J. (3)
Taveira, Maria do Céu
Cluster 6 (2) light blue	Cluster 7 (2) –orange	Cluster 8 (2) –grey	Cluster 9 (2) –pink	Cluster 10(1) light pink
Boumans, npg (1)	Eason, Christianne m. (1)	Liu, Jian colmillo (1)	Claiborne, Nancy (1)	Aarons, Gregory a.
Landeweerd, yo (1)	Mazerolle, Stephanie (1)	Poghosyan, Lusine (1)	Zeitlin, Wendy (1)
Cluster 11 (1) green	Cluster 12 (1) gray	Cluster 13 (1) light green	Cluster 14 (1) light purple	Cluster 15 (1) light blue
Cortina, Lilia m.	Grandjean, bd	Hasson, Henna	Karanikola, María n. k.	Kirkcaldy, de
Cluster 16 (1) light orange	Cluster 17 (1) light grey	Cluster 18 (1) light pink	Cluster 19 (1) Grey	Cluster 20 (1) light grey
Laschinger, heather k. sp	McCaughey, Deirdre	Mottaz, CJ	Rozman, Maja	Motion, Willibald

Source: Web of Science data made with VOSviewer software (2024). Note: The color in the table footer is used to identify each cluster represented in the graph.

.

Figure 3 displays the co-authorship graph generated using VOSviewer, illustrating the collaborative relationships among authors with at least four publications in the field. Each node represents an individual author, and the connecting lines indicate co-athored scientific articles. The graph is color-coded to distinguish the 20 identified clusters, each grouping authors who have collaborated with one another.

For example, Cluster 1 (red) includes authors such as Robert Cuaresma and Steven D. Brown, who have jointly worked on studies related to organizational climate in educational contexts. Cluster 4 (yellow) groups Heather Laschinger and Judith Shamian, renowned for their research in the nursing field, with multiple publications in healthcare management journals. These connections reflect thematic and geographic collaboration patterns. However, the low interconnection between clusters reveals fragmentation in the scientific network on OC and JS.

A cluster represents a group of influential authors who have collaborated in the production of scientific papers. The graph shows a minimal cluster association, which means that each group of authors interacts very little with the other groups, forming small, isolated networks composed of fewer researchers. Consequently, the fragility of the research network on the subject is evident, as it is made up of researchers who work largely in isolation.

As for the main sources of publication, it is observed that 2228 articles have been published in 1080 journals indexed in WoS, showing a low degree of concentration. Specifically, 10 journals have published 282 articles, which represents 12.7% of the total publications on the subject, with an average of 32 citations per article, a total of 9023 citations and an h-index of 47.

Table 6. Web of Science journals in which scientific production is generated.

R	Sources (Magazines)	N	% Tt	TC-OC	PC-OC	H-OC	FI 5 Years	Q
1	Journal of Nursing Management	48	2.15%	2.532	52.75	25	5.2	Second trimester
2	International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health	39	1.75%	453	11.62	13	4.7	Second trimester
3	Journal of Advanced Nursing	31	1.39%	1.101	38.52	20	3.8	Question 1
4	Frontiers in psychology	30	1.35%	367	12.23	9	4.3	Question 1
5	Journal of Vocational Behavior	29	1.30%	1.821	62.79	20	10.5	Question 1
6	Journal of Nursing Administration	25	1.12%	1.433	57.32	15	2.1	Second trimester
7	Journal of Clinical Nursing	22	0.99%	536	24,36	13	4	Question 1
8	Working a Prevention Journal Evaluation Rehabilitation	21	0.94%	261	12.43	10	2.3	Third trimester
9	Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology	19	0.85%	116	6.11	6	1	Question 4
10	Sustainability	18	0.81%	310	17.22	9	4	Second trimester
	Total sets	282	12.66%	9.023	32	47

Source: Own based on data from Web of Science (2024).

details the 10 journals that have published at least 18 articles related to the concepts of ‘OC’ and ‘JS’, classified by the number of articles published, with total citations as a secondary criterion.

Analyzing Table 6, the most productive journal is the Journal of Nursing Management, published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd., with 48 articles on search concepts. In addition to having the highest number of citations (2532), making it the most influential publisher on the subject, it also boasts the highest h-index. However, the Journal of Vocational Behavior has the highest average number of citations and the highest impact factor over the past five years.

As for the authors’ main affiliated organizations, the 2228 articles show a slight institutional concentration, with researchers affiliated with 2687 organizations. Of these, 10 institutions have contributed at least 23 articles related to the topic analyzed. The details of these institutions are presented in

Table 7. Institutions with which scientific production is associated, according to authors’ affiliation.

R	Organizations	Country	For Example	% Tt	TC-OC	PC-OC	h-OC
1	Ohio University System	United States	41	1.84%	2.175	53.1	21
2	University of California System	United States	40	1.80%	1.525	38.1	20
3	Florida State University System	United States	37	1.66%	1.511	40.8	21
4	Pennsylvania Commonwealth System of Higher Education	United States	35	1.57%	1.062	30.3	17
5	University of Wisconsin System	United States	35	1.57%	1.504	43.0	19
6	Harvard University	United States	32	1.44%	836	26.1	13
7	University System of Maryland	United States	26	1.17%	2.642	101.6	17
8	University of North Carolina	United States	25	1.12%	1.726	69.0	18
9	Instituto Karolinska	Switzerland	23	1.03%	817	35.5	15
10	State University of New York Suny System	United States	23	1.03%	990	43.0	14
	Overview of the set		297	14.23%	13.624	45.87	59

Source: Data from Web of Science (2024).

, ordered by their influence on the topic, measured by the number of articles, the total number of citations, the average number of citations and their h-index, in relation to the search vector ‘OC’ and ‘JS’.

Table 7 shows that the group of 10 institutions, each of which publishes at least 23 articles related to search concepts, represents 14.23% of the total articles on the topic, indicating a slight institutional concentration. In addition, these institutions have an h-index of 59, with an average of 45.87 citations per article and a total of 13,624 citations. These figures apply collectively to all institutions, as some articles involve multiple institutions due to co-authorship.

It also states that the most productive institution is the Ohio University System, with 41 articles, while the most influential is the University System of Maryland, with 2642 citations. This institution also has the highest average citations, with 101.6 citations per article. Next, a scientometric analysis of the co-authorships is carried out. For this analysis, institutions with at least 10 articles on research concepts are selected. Using these parameters, the VOSviewer software identifies seven clusters and selects 39 of the 2687 organizations associated with research on the topic. These groups are detailed in

Table 8. Joint bibliographic groups for the most cited scientific production.

Group 1 (7 items)	Group 2 (Item 7)	Group 3 (7 items)	Group 4 (5 topics)
Columbia University (3)	Maastricht University	Deakin University	Instituto Karolinska (5)
Harvard Medical School (3)	Radboud University Numegen	Monash University	Lund University
Harvard University	Tilburg University	University of Queensland Techno	University Deck
Stanford University (3)	University of Amsterdam (4)	University of Edinburgh	Uppsala University
Suny Albany	University of Groningen	University of Melbourne	Wayne State University
University of Maryland	University of Zurich	University of New South Wales
University of Pittsburgh	University of Amsterdam	University of Queensland (7)
Group 5 (5 topics)	Group 6 (4 items)	Group 7 (4 topics)
Universidad Case Western Reserve	Michigan State University	Universidad Northwestern (4)
Katholieke University Leuven	Texas A&M University	University of Massachusetts (4)
Pennsylvania State University (5)	University of Michigan (6)	University of Minnesota
Tel Aviv University	University of North Carolina	University of Wisconsin (4)
University of Valencia

Source: Authors’ elaboration based on data from Web of Science (2024).

; the institutions maintain the highest number of co-authorships per group, highlighted in bold and italics. The graph in Figure 4 shows the connections between the different institutions, with each of the seven groups represented in different colors.

The graph in Figure 4 shows the seven groups, each represented by a different color. The first group, in red; the second group, shown in green; the third group, in blue; the fourth group, in purple; the fifth group, in yellow; the sixth group, in light blue; and finally, the seventh group, in orange, which together have the largest number of co-authorships with six other institutions.

In relation to the main countries of affiliation, from the 2228 articles analyzed, there is a high geographical concentration, with 71.45% of the articles produced by the 10 most productive countries out of a total of 105 countries that have published at least one article related to search concepts.

Table 9. Countries/Regions with which scientific production is associated, according to the author’s affiliation.

R	Countries/Regions	NP	% Tt	TC-OC	PC-OC	h-OC
1	United States	741	33.26%	32.669	55.09	88
2	Australia	176	7.90%	5.550	31.53	37
3	Germany	161	7.23%	4.209	26.14	32
4	Canada	137	6.15%	7.326	53.47	44
5	England	121	5.43%	6.692	55.31	40
6	R. of China Peoples	105	4.71%	3.705	35.29	26
7	Spain	105	4.71%	1.656	15.77	23
8	Sweden	101	4.53%	2.411	23.87	29
9	Netherlands	85	3.82%	2.716	31.95	30
10	Israel	55	2.47%	1.371	24.93	18
	Overview of the set	1.592	71.454%	58.237	36.58	108

Source: Data from Web of Science (2024).

details the 10 countries that have developed and published more than 55 articles related to ‘OC’ and ‘JS’. These 10 countries together have an h-index of 108, with an average of 36.58 citations per article and a total of 1592 citations, representing 71.4% of the total citations.

According to the data presented in Table 9, the United States is the most productive and influential country, having generated 741 articles and received 32,669 citations related to the concepts of ‘OC’ and ‘JS’. It also has the highest h-index (88). In contrast, England has the highest average number of citations per article (55.31). The graph in Figure 5 illustrates co-authorship between countries, showing that 45 of the 105 countries, each with at least one co-authored article, are grouped into six groups, as detailed in

Table 10. Intercountry co-authorship group.

Cluster 1 (Red-11)	Group 2 (Green-9)	Cluster 3 (Blue-8)	Group 4 (Yellow-7)	Cluster 5 (Purple-6)	Cluster 6 (Light Blue-4)
England (35)	Australia	Denmark	Belgium	Cyprus (8)	Austria
Indonesia	Canada	Finland	Brazil	Greece	Germany
Italy	Japan	France	Chile	India (8)	Netherlands (23)
New Zealand	R. China Peoples	Ireland	Colombia	Iran	Switzerland
Pakistan	Singapore	Israel	Mexico	Malaysia (8)
Poland	South Korea	Norway	South Africa	Saudi Arabia
Portugal	Taiwan	Scotland	Spain (26)
Romania	United States (35)	Sweden (19)
Russia	Vietnam
Slovenia
Türkiye

Source: Own based on VOSviewer (2024). The color in the table footer is used to identify each cluster represented in the graph.

. For each group, the countries with the most co-authorships are highlighted in bold and italics.

The graph in Figure 5 shows each cluster identified by different colors, with the size of the circle representing the number of co-authorships a country maintains. In cluster 1 (red), England has the highest number of co-authorships (35) and is connected to most of the other clusters. In group 2 (green), the United States leads with 35 co-authorships. In group 3 (blue), Sweden has the highest number of co-authors, with a total of 19. In cluster 4 (yellow), Spain is the country with the most co-authorships, with 26. In group 5 (purple), Cyprus, India and Malaysia have the highest number of co-authors, with eight each. Finally, in group 6 (light blue), the Netherlands has the highest number of co-authors, with 23.

Of the 4522 keywords used by the author in articles published in Web of Science, 28 appear at least 20 times and are used recurrently, as shown in Figure 6. This figure shows six groups, with the keyword most often highlighted in bold and italics, as detailed in

Table 11. Clusters of co-occurrence in the use of keywords by the author.

Cluster 1 6 items—red	Burnout—mental health—motivation—primary care—satisfaction—stress
Cluster 2 6 items—green	Nurses—quality of life—job satisfaction—work stress—work–life balance—working conditions
Cluster 3 5 items—blue	Job satisfaction—Organizational climate—Organizational commitment—Organizational culture—Turnover intention
Cluster 4 5 items—yellow	Leadership—Nursing—Retention—Turnover—Work Environment
Group 5 4 items—purple	Life Satisfaction—Self-Efficacy—Well-Being—Work-Family Conflict
Group 6 2 items—light blue	COVID-19—Work Engagement

Source: Data from Web of Science (2024). Note: The color in the table footer is used to identify each cluster represented in the graph.

.

In Table 11, the keywords are grouped by cluster, highlighting the various topics around which the articles studied are developed. Each group is assigned a color to facilitate its identification. From the analysis of the graph, in cluster 1 (red), the keyword “Burnout” is the most frequent, with 26 occurrences. In group 2 (green), “job satisfaction” predominates, also with 26 occurrences. In group 3 (blue), “job satisfaction” is the most frequent, with 26 occurrences. In group 4 (yellow), the concept “nursing” is the most prominent, with 17 occurrences. In group 5 (purple), “well-being” predominates, with 22 occurrences. Finally, in cluster 6 (light blue), both keywords in the cluster appear 16 times each.

Table 12. Keywords of the author with the highest co-occurrence.

N	Keyword	Occurrence
1	Job satisfaction	359
2	Work satisfaction	324
3	Organizational climate	121
4	Burnout	110
5	Stress	60
6	Nurses	60
7	nursing	54
8	satisfaction	52
9	Welfare	49
10	mental health	48

Source: Data from Web of Science (2024).

provides a detailed list of the author’s 10 most frequent keywords, ranked from highest to lowest occurrence.

Table 12 presents two similar terms: “Job satisfaction” and “Work satisfaction.” Although both refer to satisfaction in the workplace, their separate appearance in the Web of Science database reflects variability in keyword usage by authors. “Job satisfaction” is the most commonly used term in Anglo-Saxon literature, while “Work satisfaction” appears in studies adopting broader or translated perspectives. Therefore, both terms were retained in the table, as they represent distinct entries in the keyword co-occurrence analysis.

5. Discussion

Scientific progress is intrinsically based on previous work; current studies form the basis for future research and publications. Therefore, our research is significantly strengthened by the application of scientometrics. This methodology has gained great traction in recent years, becoming a consolidated technique for evaluating scientific production and all phenomena related to scientific communication. The descriptive bibliometric analysis used provides a detailed and organized source of information on the scientific production related to ‘OC’ and ‘JS’. In this way, scientometrics effectively complemented our review, allowing us to examine structural aspects within the scientific community.

Our findings demonstrate that both ‘OC’ and ‘JS’ have achieved remarkable prominence in recent decades, exhibiting exponential growth over the past 10 years. This trend underscores a growing research interest in bolstering knowledge about organizational challenges, particularly those related to productivity and talent retention. We highlight the important contributions of Professors Heather Laschinger and Judith Shamian, whose work has focused on working conditions in the health sector, especially among nurses. This aligns with our observation that journals with the highest number of relevant articles and studies involving this group of employees consistently address these issues.

The bibliometric and scientometric analysis performed underscores the continued need for an in-depth study of ‘OC’ and ‘JS’. Despite the proliferation of scientific articles in recent decades, critical gaps remain, especially with regard to inter-institutional and transnational collaboration in research. Such collaboration is essential if future results are to be replicated across national borders and reflect the challenges that prevail in various global contexts.

The analysis revealed significant international gaps in scientific production, particularly in regions such as Latin America, Southeast Asia, parts of Africa. These disparities may be partially explained by linguistic and cultural barriers that limit access to dominant publication channels, which are often English-language journals. Additionally, cultural differences in organizational practices and research priorities may influence the visibility and volume of studies on OC and JS. Addressing these barriers is essential to promote more inclusive and globally representative research in the field. The trends reflected through the most influential articles, authors, clusters of authors can motivate researchers to use these references or establish contact with these groups to foster collaboration, thereby promoting increased scientific production in the field, especially in geographically underrepresented areas.

Although it is true that the bibliometric and scientometric analysis carried out provides important quantitative findings, its limited depth with respect to the qualitative contributions and interpretative knowledge related to the constructs of the analyzed research is recognized, constituting one of the limitations of the study, to which is added the selection of only two constructs, since the literature recognizes numerous variables related to the environmental conditions of the work, which could mediate or moderate the relationship between ‘OC’ and ‘JS’.

6. Conclusions

The central contribution of this research lies in its ability to synthesize the accumulated knowledge on Organizational Climate (OC) and Job Satisfaction (JS). This synthesis covers their frequency, keyword relationships, connections with other constructs, influential sources, existing links in the development of related research.

From a theoretical point of view, this study offers a critical warning: even highly cited studies published to date exhibit limited generalization. This is mainly due to the absence of inter-institutional connections, which in turn highlights important opportunities for further research. These opportunities are particularly relevant for researchers and institutions in developing countries and continents, exemplified by regions such as India, Southeast Asia, Latin America, who, through the influence of more cited authors or clusters, could reduce their gaps in scientific production in the area.

From a practical perspective, this study provides valuable insights for managers, administrators, professionals in the field of people management. It offers a global overview of research trends that have gained prominence over the past decade, particularly regarding constructs such as Organizational Climate and Job Satisfaction. These findings can inform the design and implementation of workplace practices aimed at improving employees’ environmental conditions.

Given the limitations of the study, we suggest that future research explore other variables that could influence the relationship between OC and JS, such as personality traits, leadership styles, emotional intelligence, or organizational citizenship behavior. Another promising avenue for future research is to conduct a systematic and exhaustive review of the literature on both constructs, which aims, among other objectives, to evaluate the quality of the conclusions and findings reached.