Social acceptance of renewable energies: a meta-analytic review of 40 years of related literature

The social acceptance of renewable energies is crucial for the success of the energy transition process and the fight against climate change. The concept was first mentioned in 1984, but it was not until the beginning of the twenty-first century that scientific interest in the subject became widespread. This interest led to the production of extensive, heterogeneous, and plentiful literature. This paper aims to determine the nature of the literature by mapping all scientific knowledge created in the last forty years and deposited in Scopus. Techniques based on systematised scoping reviews and bibliometric analysis were used to examine the typology, theme, trend, temporal and spatial dimensions, impact, and methodologies of 285 articles. The results indicate that the literature is divided into nine thematic areas, grouped into three clusters that have evolved differently over time. Articles on this matter receive a high level of citations and impact metrics. Furthermore, some countries receive more attention than anticipated, and wind energy is the most prominent source. Researchers often employ quantitative methods, such as logistic regression, using data collected from surveys. Finally, this study identifies possible directions for future research, focusing on aspects that must receive more attention.