Mapping the ESG-corporate finance literature in India: systematic literature review, bibliometric analysis and future directions

Purpose Although past studies have reviewed the role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in corporate finance, growing realization on the influence of contextual variables has necessitated re-examination in light of unique situational settings. Given that India presents a distinctive context, this study aims to map, synthesize and evaluate the Indian literature on corporate ESG and its role in financial management. Design/methodology/approach The study adopts a combination of qualitative and quantitative techniques. Using systematic procedures, 101 documents are selected from the Scopus database, and a bibliometric analysis, including performance analyses of prominent journals, publication trends and authors, is conducted along with keyword co-occurrence and bibliometric coupling analysis using the VOSviewer software. Additionally, an in-depth systematic literature review using content analysis is undertaken to consolidate insights from the selected corpus based on the theory–context–methodology framework. Findings Publication trend analyses indicate a growing interest in the topic, while the bibliometric analysis leads to three thematic areas: the ESG–financial performance link, CSR reporting and disclosure and determinants of ESG; representing the foci of the extant literature. The content analysis reveals various theoretical and methodological gaps, which present opportunities as avenues for future research – while also underscoring the need for more granular and diversified research in the Indian context. Originality/value This study is among the first to use both a systematic content analytical review and bibliometric analysis techniques to examine the impact of ESG on corporate finance in India. This study addresses the need for context-based ESG research and presents a wide perspective on the ESG–corporate finance nexus while also undertaking a detailed analysis of the extant literature. This work is the first of its kind in the known field, and is expected to provide significant informative value to a variety of stakeholders and decision-makers.