Sustainability Reporting and Audit Quality: A Bibliometric Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

This study examines the global development of research on sustainability reporting and audit quality. Using a Scopus-exported dataset comprising 167 journal and review articles published between 2011 and 2026, the study employs bibliometric analysis to identify publication trends, influential studies, productive authors, leading journals, geographical distribution, and major thematic clusters. The findings indicate that the literature expanded substantially after 2020, with the highest annual publication output recorded in 2025. The most prominent themes include corporate governance, audit committees, audit quality, sustainability reporting, ESG disclosure, and sustainability assurance. The keyword co-occurrence network reveals several interrelated clusters, including corporate governance and corporate social responsibility; audit committees, stakeholder theory, and ESG disclosure; sustainability disclosure, assurance, and firm performance; as well as disclosure, internal audit, and sustainability reporting quality. The review suggests that future studies should pay greater attention to assurance quality under mandatory sustainability reporting regimes, the role of audit quality in strengthening ESG credibility, and comparative evidence from emerging and developed markets. This study contributes to the literature by mapping the recent bibliometric landscape and synthesizing the principal theoretical perspectives that have been applied in this field.

Keywords: sustainability reporting; audit quality; ESG disclosure; audit committee; corporate governance; bibliometric analysis