Exploring Diversity Management to Avoid Social Washing and Pinkwashing: Using Bibliometric Analysis to Shape Future Research Directions

Objectives: The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been a significant focus of environmental, social and governance sustainability research. Diversity management is one of the challenges faced by corporate governance in achieving SDG 4, 5, 8, and 10. However, rapid demographic changes in the global workforce create significant challenges for human resource development pro- fessionals when focusing on diversity management. This paper aims to define the different perspectives of diversity management to avoid sustainability dis- tortions such as social washing and pinkwashing, which promote the percep- tion that policies or products of a given company are socially responsible. Methodology: The analysis of the existing literature can provide the informa- tion necessary to answer the research questions using rigorous scientific re- search methods. In the present study bibliometric analysis was used to enable a thorough and reliable analysis of knowledge on the topic and the identification of future progress. Bibliometric analysis was used to investigate the final pool of 126 peer-reviewed articles. Findings: Contributions include advancing the understanding of diversity man- agement, highlighting the dominance of communication bias, and strengthening the connection between social sustainability and the individual by identifying social exchange theory as a tool for explaining the ongoing changes in corporate governance.Value added: The paper aims to answer research questions related to the journals relevant to the study of diversity management, the geographical structure of the research flow on diversity management, and the possible implications for future research on this topic. Recommendations: In light of the clusters identified, it is recommended that forthcoming researchers explore the fitting theories that can be used to eluci- date the phenomenon of diversity management. In addition, interdisciplinary research can facilitate a deeper understanding of issues concerning identity and gender, thereby enhancing the knowledge of diversity among managers. The paper recommends that future studies emphasize the differences in di- versity management between national and multinational companies expanding the knowledge by conducting multiple case studies.