A Literature Analysis of Sustainability Reporting Quality

The research aims to map the status of the sustainability reporting quality (SRQ) field through a systematic literature review, highlighting its factors, exploring the theories on which sustainability reporting quality studies are based and identifying new research trends. Based on the concept of quality as compliance with the reporting principles, the research was conducted through a systematic literature network analysis (SLNA) method, combining systematic literature review (SLR) and bibliometric network analysis (BNA) methodologies. We analysed 325 papers published from 1990 to 2024 through VOSviewer and R-studio Bibliometrix package and extracted from the Scopus database. The results of the analysis detailed the leading papers and journals and discussed the four theme clusters identified through the keywords co-occurrence analysis: assurance, content in different sectors, corporate governance and stakeholders engagement, and sustainability regulation; highlighted also the main future research and put forward the main theories in the field under study. The results of the study have implications for academia, providing a wide state of the research about the SRQ, for the policymakers and regulators, highlighting criticism, need and lacks, and for the management, allowing them to know the best practices for drawing up a high-quality sustainability reporting. The SRQ has to be improved for the right sustainability management, to correctly inform stakeholders and to contribute to sustainable development.