Write a PREreview

The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) has become a central framework for analyzing technology adoption across diverse fields, yet little is known about the epistemic community of scholars who sustain and expand this model and how their contributions connect to sustainable development. This study addresses the question of who the key actors are within the UTAUT research community and to what extent their work aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A bibliometric analysis was conducted using Web of Science data from 2003 to 2025, applying Price’s, Lotka’s, Zipf’s, and Hirsch’s laws, together with co-authorship, cross-citation, and keyword co-occurrence network analyses, visualized through VOSviewer. The results reveal exponential growth in UTAUT-related publications, with 2,278 articles authored by 6,952 researchers, of whom only 31 can be considered central actors combining high productivity, impact, and thematic relevance. These authors are organized into distinct collaborative clusters, and their most influential works build directly upon Venkatesh et al.’s foundational contributions. Thematic evolution indicates a shift from general constructs of technology perception toward applications in mobile banking, education, and artificial intelligence. Overall, the findings confirm the vitality of UTAUT research and highlight its contributions to SDG 4 (quality education) and, to a lesser extent, SDG 11 (sustainable cities), SDG 3 (health), and others, underscoring the need to adapt adoption models to emerging sustainability challenges.