The physical work environment in management research: a bibliometric analysis of knowledge structures, collaboration networks, and workplace transformations

Abstract

This article offers a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of research on physical work environments and maps its intellectual structure, thematic evolution, and collaborative dynamics over the past four decades from a business and management perspective. It reveals how previously fragmented streams of research on workplace design, employee well-being, and organizational performance are embedded in the broader management literature. The analysis provides insights into how the physical work environment has evolved from a peripheral topic to a topic of strategic concern in organizational research. Based on a dataset of 834 publications indexed in Scopus and Web of Science between 1978 and 2024, it captures the contributions of 1,906 authors publishing across 214 sources. Using advanced bibliometric techniques such as co-citation analysis, keyword co-occurrence, and strategic mapping, the study reveals a transition from early concerns with office layout and facility management to more recent emphases on employee well-being, workplace design, and the impacts of COVID-19. The thematic structure shows well-developed motor themes, such as office buildings and sustainability, alongside basic themes, such as workplace, productivity, and the physical work environment. Emerging topics include coworking spaces and workplace learning, while niche areas such as indoor air quality and workplace health highlight growing specialization. The results uncover the underlying knowledge structure of physical work environment research and highlight emerging research areas related to workplace transformation, hybrid work arrangements, and employee-centered workspace design. This study provides the conceptual foundation that enables researchers to better position future workplace research.