Mapping Project Success Research: A Comparative Bibliometric Analysis of Critical Success Factors and Success Criteria

Abstract

Project success has evolved from a traditional view centred on cost, time and quality towards broader approaches that incorporate stakeholders, benefit realisation, sustainability, value creation and strategic impact. In this context, CSFs and SCs represent two complementary perspectives: the former identify the conditions that may favour project success, whereas the latter establish the criteria by which such success can be evaluated. The aim of this study was to analyse, through bibliometric analysis, the scientific evolution, thematic structure and intellectual structure of the literature on CSFs and SCs in the project domain. To this end, records were extracted from the Web of Science Core Collection for the period 2000–2025, yielding a final dataset of 2319 publications on CSFs and 399 publications on SCs. The analysis included indicators of annual scientific production, Web of Science categories, most relevant sources, keyword co-occurrence, co-citation analysis, bibliographic coupling and co-authorship analysis, using VOSviewer to construct bibliometric maps. The results show sustained growth in scientific production, particularly for CSFs, together with a multidisciplinary thematic structure linked to project management, construction, sustainability, governance, digital transformation and performance evaluation. The maps suggest that CSFs have a broader and more diversified bibliographic base, whereas SCs draw on a smaller core of classic studies on project success and outcome evaluation. Overall, the study confirms that the integrated analysis of CSFs and SCs provides a better understanding of both the conditions that favour success and the criteria used to evaluate it, offering useful implications for managers and practitioners in decision-making aimed at improving project performance and outcomes.