Contribution of psychology to sustainable development goals: a bibliometric analysis

Abstract Psychology investigates mental processes laying the foundation of sustainable behaviors and develops strategies to promote environmentally friendly activities, informing both individual choices and policy decisions. Therefore, psychology is one of the key disciplines contributing to the study of Sustainable Development Goals. The United Nations established the Sustainable Development Goals in 2015 to transform our world by addressing global challenges. This study examines the distribution of psychology studies across Sustainable Development Goals, subfields, publication years, document types, countries, languages, researchers, journals, and keywords using bibliometric analysis and VOSviewer mapping. Most of the studies focus on Goal 3 “good health and well-being”, which aims to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all individuals at all ages (33.06%), and most studies in psychology have been multidisciplinary (36.90%). Researchers published most of these Sustainable Development Goals studies in 2022 (25.4%), primarily as articles (77.40%). Researchers in the United States conducted 17.02% of these studies, and 97.34% of them were written in English. Di Fabio leads in authorship (1.60%, n = 6) with 6 citations per publication, whereas Frontiers in Psychology ranks first in publications (documents = 90). “Sustainable development goals” is the most frequently used keyword. The results suggest that psychology makes a significant contribution to Sustainable Development Goals, particularly in areas such as health, well-being, and environmental behavior. The results indicate that these psychology studies will likely increase rapidly. Researchers should pursue multidisciplinary, international studies on understudied Sustainable Development Goals, while policymakers should incorporate psychological insights and increase support for sustainability efforts.