ABSTRACT This work explores the historical, current, and future direction of the research on the relationship between CEO characteristics and ESG commitment, including ESG controversies—a recent key measure of corporate sustainability reputation that remains underexplored. We propose a bibliometric and systematic literature review of 49 academic articles from high‐quality journals, published between 2014 and 2024, selected according to the SPAR‐4‐SLR protocol. Although CEOs play an essential role in corporate sustainability, the literature is fragmented and focuses on a narrow range of CEO traits. Additionally, reliance on quantitative methods limits understanding of the behavioural mechanisms underlying CEO engagement in ESG strategies.
Agnese et al. (2026) studied this question.