A Systems Perspective on Material Stocks Research: From Quantification to Sustainability

Material stocks (MS) serve as essential physical foundations for socio–economic systems, reflecting the accumulation, transformation, and consumption of resources over time and space. Positioned at the intersection of environmental and socio–economic systems, MS are increasingly recognized as levera...

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Main Authors: Tiejun Dai, Zhongchun Yue, Xufeng Zhang, Yuanying Chi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-07-01
Series:Systems
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2079-8954/13/7/587
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author Tiejun Dai
Zhongchun Yue
Xufeng Zhang
Yuanying Chi
author_facet Tiejun Dai
Zhongchun Yue
Xufeng Zhang
Yuanying Chi
author_sort Tiejun Dai
collection DOAJ
description Material stocks (MS) serve as essential physical foundations for socio–economic systems, reflecting the accumulation, transformation, and consumption of resources over time and space. Positioned at the intersection of environmental and socio–economic systems, MS are increasingly recognized as leverage points for advancing sustainability. However, there is currently a lack of comprehensive overview, making it difficult to fully capture the latest developments and cutting–edge research. We adopt a systems perspective to conduct a comprehensive bibliometric and thematic review of 602 scholarly publications on MS research. The results showed that MS research encompasses has three development periods: preliminary exploration (before 2007), rapid development (2007–2016), and expansion and deepening (after 2016). MS research continues to deepen, gathering multiple teams and differentiating into diverse topics. MS research has evolved from simple accounting to intersection with socio–economic, resources, and environmental systems, and shifted from relying on statistical data to integrating high–spatio–temporal–resolution geographic big data. MS research is shifting from problem revelation to problem solving, constantly achieving new developments and improvements. In the future, it is still necessary to refine MS spatio–temporal distribution, reveal MS’s evolution mechanism, establish standardized databases, strengthen interaction with other systems, enhance problem–solving abilities, and provide powerful guidance for the formulation of dematerialization and decarbonization policies to achieve sustainable development.
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spelling doaj-art-3fc9a62ede3146cb830bcfd9aff970122025-08-20T03:32:16ZengMDPI AGSystems2079-89542025-07-0113758710.3390/systems13070587A Systems Perspective on Material Stocks Research: From Quantification to SustainabilityTiejun Dai0Zhongchun Yue1Xufeng Zhang2Yuanying Chi3College of Economics & Management, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, ChinaCollege of Economics & Management, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, ChinaCollege of Economics & Management, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, ChinaCollege of Economics & Management, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, ChinaMaterial stocks (MS) serve as essential physical foundations for socio–economic systems, reflecting the accumulation, transformation, and consumption of resources over time and space. Positioned at the intersection of environmental and socio–economic systems, MS are increasingly recognized as leverage points for advancing sustainability. However, there is currently a lack of comprehensive overview, making it difficult to fully capture the latest developments and cutting–edge research. We adopt a systems perspective to conduct a comprehensive bibliometric and thematic review of 602 scholarly publications on MS research. The results showed that MS research encompasses has three development periods: preliminary exploration (before 2007), rapid development (2007–2016), and expansion and deepening (after 2016). MS research continues to deepen, gathering multiple teams and differentiating into diverse topics. MS research has evolved from simple accounting to intersection with socio–economic, resources, and environmental systems, and shifted from relying on statistical data to integrating high–spatio–temporal–resolution geographic big data. MS research is shifting from problem revelation to problem solving, constantly achieving new developments and improvements. In the future, it is still necessary to refine MS spatio–temporal distribution, reveal MS’s evolution mechanism, establish standardized databases, strengthen interaction with other systems, enhance problem–solving abilities, and provide powerful guidance for the formulation of dematerialization and decarbonization policies to achieve sustainable development.https://www.mdpi.com/2079-8954/13/7/587material stocks (MS)sustainable developmentbibliometrics analysisresource managementspatio–temporal analysissystem interaction
spellingShingle Tiejun Dai
Zhongchun Yue
Xufeng Zhang
Yuanying Chi
A Systems Perspective on Material Stocks Research: From Quantification to Sustainability
Systems
material stocks (MS)
sustainable development
bibliometrics analysis
resource management
spatio–temporal analysis
system interaction
title A Systems Perspective on Material Stocks Research: From Quantification to Sustainability
title_full A Systems Perspective on Material Stocks Research: From Quantification to Sustainability
title_fullStr A Systems Perspective on Material Stocks Research: From Quantification to Sustainability
title_full_unstemmed A Systems Perspective on Material Stocks Research: From Quantification to Sustainability
title_short A Systems Perspective on Material Stocks Research: From Quantification to Sustainability
title_sort systems perspective on material stocks research from quantification to sustainability
topic material stocks (MS)
sustainable development
bibliometrics analysis
resource management
spatio–temporal analysis
system interaction
url https://www.mdpi.com/2079-8954/13/7/587
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