Mapping the Landscape of Spiritual Well-Being: A Bibliometric Analysis of Web of Science Publications

Abstract

This study aimed to examine the evolution of the spiritual wellbeing literature between 1978 and 2025 through a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of 6,383 academic papers published in the Web of Science database. The research employed performance analysis, conceptual mapping, concurrency and co-citation networks, historiography, and thematic trend analyses. The findings indicate that the number of publications increased rapidly, particularly after 2010 and during the COVID-19 pandemic, reaching a peak in 2024. The Journal of Religion & Health, Psycho-Oncology, and Psychology of Religion and Spirituality stood out as the most productive journals, with Duke, Emory, and Boston universities providing the most contributions. The analyses revealed that Kenneth I. Pargament, Harold G. Koenig, and Crystal L. Park, with their high citation impact, formed the intellectual foundation of the field. Thematic analyses revealed that this concept has evolved from its historical clinical and religious contexts to its current psychosocial, cultural, and interdisciplinary dimensions. Findings reveal that spiritual well-being is a multidimensional construct that increases individual psychological balance, life satisfaction, and psychological resilience while reducing social adaptation and occupational burnout.