Global research perspectives on privacy and human rights through a data-driven scientometric review analysis

Abstract

This study applies a scientometric analysis using RStudio (Bibliometrix/Biblioshiny) to map 764 publications on “Human Rights” and the “Right to Privacy” from Scopus and Web of Science (1972–2024). We first examine publication trends, revealing a 12% average annual growth—peaking between 2018 and 2022—and a concentration of output in North America and Europe alongside rising contributions from Asia and Africa. Then, we examine author and institutional influence via h-index, citation frequency, and co-authorship networks and determine a central network of frequent contributors (h-index ≥ 3) and dominant hubs like Leiden University and the International Journal of Human Rights. Thematic mapping reveals the movement away from root ideas (“human rights,” “confidentiality”) to more recent themes such as “health,” “data protection,” and “artificial intelligence.” At the same time, co-word networks pinpoint the rising clusters in ethics of surveillance and AI regulation. While all this has been accomplished, global cooperation is still below 3%, and there is no standardized legal regime regulating privacy during the digital era. We suggest focused funding on cross-regional collaborations, inter-disciplinary research cutting across law, ethics, and technology, and the creation of binding policy tools—like a world “Privacy Codex”—to fill regulatory blanks and protect individual autonomy in a more integrated world.