Two Decades of Research on Sustainability and Sovereign Ratings: Trends, Research Puzzles and Future Directions

The article provides a systematic and bibliometric review of the literature on the relationship between countries’ ESG scores and their sovereign ratings. The study, which follows the PRISMA 2020 guidelines, employs a bibliometric methodology using a sample of 168 peer-reviewed articles sourced from Scopus and WoS (2006–2024) to analyze the progression of research in this growing area. The analysis shows that academic output is concentrated in Europe (35% of publications) and North America (12% of publications), and that there is increasing interest in incorporating ESG factors into sovereign risk assessment, especially since 2019. The bibliometric mapping shows that themes concerning ESG integration into sovereign risk assessment, rating methodologies, and sustainability-driven financial risk pricing are predominant. Four main research streams are revealed through co-occurrence and clustering analyses, which also highlight an expanding yet disjointed body of knowledge. The results also suggest large differences in how ESG ratings are calculated, which brings into question how comparable and reliable they are for use in empirical studies. This study helps structure the field and proposes a more coherent research agenda by identifying four key research puzzles. Future research should concentrate on enhancing ESG measurement, breaking down its components, and crafting tailored approaches for emerging markets.