Transformational leadership and teacher well-being: A bibliometric analysis

Abstract

This study examines the development, intellectual structure, collaboration networks, and main themes of Scopus publications on transformational leadership and teacher well-being, with particular attention to the visibility of organizational climate. A descriptive bibliometric analysis was conducted on journal articles published between 2016 and 2026. A title, abstract, and keyword search identified 170 records; after applying the Scopus article filter, 155 documents were selected. Publication and citation indicators were complemented by author co-authorship, author keyword co-occurrence, and author co-citation analyses using VOSviewer 1.6.21. The corpus received 2,057 citations and achieved an h-index of 22. Scientific output increased markedly after 2022, with 35 indexed articles in 2025 and in the incomplete year 2026. Of the 477 authors identified, 22 published at least two papers, and the largest collaboration group included seven authors. Thirty-six keywords reached a minimum of three occurrences; transformational leadership (92) and job satisfaction (46) were the predominant themes. The co-citation network comprised 21 authors grouped into three clusters. In contrast, organizational climate appeared only once, while school climate and organizational culture were each recorded four times. The findings indicate that this growing interdisciplinary field is grounded in leadership and occupational well-being; however, organizational climate remains poorly visible as a research concept. Bibliometric proximity does not demonstrate causal relationships, and terminological limitations, database coverage, and the absence of manual screening restrict the inferences that can be drawn.