A Retrospective Overview of 20 Years of Social Entrepreneurship Research. A Bibliometric Analysis

The field of Social Entrepreneurship (SE) has generated a significant number of literature on numerous issues, therefore, it is necessary to conduct a comprehensive review of existing studies in this area of study in order to provide a general overview and information on key actors in the field. This study presents a bibliometric analysis of two decades of research in the field of SE in order to ascertain the most important actors. The study further presents information on seven clusters, offering insights into prevailing research patterns within the field of SE. These clusters may be used as a foundation for identifying prospective avenues of future study. The results indicate that there is a lack of representation in terms of research output in the area of social entrepreneurship among institutions in developing countries. This study advocates for further investment in research on Social Entrepreneurship within developing economies, with the aim of identifying innovative and sustainable solutions to the social challenges prevalent in such countries. Keywords: social entrepreneurship, social problems, sustainable solutions, bibliometrics, citation analysis