Abstract

The field of performance management in public sectors has witnessed substantial growth in its literature, indicating the need for a systematic literature review. Over time, scholars have employed diverse approaches to reviewing this body of work. Previous systematic reviews conducted in 2004 and 2014 have shed light on the changes in research and practice that have occurred since then. In order to explore the most recent advancements in performance management in the public sector, bibliometric analysis of the research papers indexed in the Scopus database are reviewed and presented in this paper. This study aims to identify emerging research directions in this field by performing content analysis on relevant articles. In recent years, bibliometrics has gained significant traction as a prominent area of research. Scholars have increasingly turned to literature reviews and keyword analysis to synthesize and integrate the vast body of work accumulated over the past three decades in this field. By employing bibliometrics techniques, the aim is to explore the trends and patterns prevalent in literature. Following the study's objectives, the authors conducted a comprehensive literature review using relevant keywords to capture the breadth and depth of research in the field. Using Scopus, a well-established academic database, 868 documents were initially identified. However, after applying strict exclusion criteria, the list was refined to 209 documents, ensuring the selection of the most relevant studies. To further refine the selection and focus on articles with a strong academic standing, the research papers of journals having Australian Business Deans Council (ABDC) ranking of B and above were considered. Consequently, a subset of 88 articles emerged as the final sample for detailed analysis using VOS Viewer, a powerful tool for conducting thorough bibliometric investigations. The findings of this study present a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of the available literature on performance management in public sectors. While conducting a systematic examination of the available research, this study presents the major thematic clusters within the performance management domain in public sectors. Additionally, the analysis sheds light on the research fronts, providing valuable insight into the current research areas in performance management in public sectors and a roadmap for future research.