Mapping the literature on Gen Z purchasing behavior: A bibliometric analysis using VOSviewer

Abstract

Generation Z makes up the largest proportion of the world’s population and owns active spending power. Born in the internet information age, they have diverse values and consumer behaviors compared to other cohorts of generations. While there has been a significant increase in research on the purchasing behavior of Generation Z in recent years, there are particularly few bibliometric studies in this field. This study aims to sort out the current research status on the purchasing behavior of Generation Z, identify the evolution of purchasing behavior research of Generation Z, determine key research hotspots, and explore future research directions and priority suggestions by analyzing the current literature. The bibliometric analysis is based on the citation information of 638 literature items about Generation Z purchasing behavior in the Scopus database. The results sort out the knowledge structure of the purchasing behavior domain of Generation Z and draw a visual map of the network. Four popular research themes are identified based on keyword co-occurrence analysis, namely the influencing factors of Generation Z consumption behavior, the comparative study with other generations of consumers, the analysis from the perspective of human demography, and the study of sustainable consumption behavior. Studies on Generation Z consumers’ spending habits from 2001 to 2022 may be divided into three stages related to the growth process of Generation Z. Future research should focus on the influence of social media on the purchasing behavior of Generation Z and the sustainability of their consumption patterns.