Risk and Bankruptcy Research: Mapping the State of the Art

Abstract

This article presents a bibliometric study on different types of risk and bankruptcy, aiming to contribute to academic knowledge in this area. We used the bibliometrix tools in R and VOSviewer, following the main laws of bibliometrics (Bradford’s law, Lotka’s law, and Zipf’s law). We analyzed 7163 relevant academic publications retrieved from the WOS database between 1995 and 2023. The characterization of the literature identified trends, importance, and scientific relevance of works, journals, and authors. This allows for promoting collaborations among researchers and provides insights for strategic decision making, advancing knowledge in the field. The most relevant journal was the “Journal of Banking and Finance”, with Edward Altman as the prominent author. The United States and China were the most active countries in research. The current research highlights terms such as “board size”, “CRS”, “responsibility”, and “governance”, which are commonly found in recent works. The themes of greatest centrality include risk, model, and debt. The bibliometric review revealed gaps in knowledge and research, indicating a growing trend of studies in this area. This article provides valuable information for researchers and managers, supporting decision making in risk management and bankruptcy.