Objective To explore the visualization application of CiteSpace software in summary of studies on occupational stress published in Chinese.

Methods The research literatures on occupational stress from 1988 to 2017 were collected based on the CNKI database, and then visualization analysis of the hot spots and trend of key words, authors and research institutes were performed by using CiteSpace 5.1 software.

Results A total of 905 papers on occupational stress studies were included. The Mapping knowledge showed that study on occupational stress developed rapidly, though the domestic research started late. Several prominent domestic research teams formed and achieved their own distinctive results. The major domestic hot spots regarding "occupational stress" included:the influential factors of occupational stress, such as "social support", "risk factor" and "job satisfaction"; key populations for occupational stress studies, such as "Nursing Staff", "Medical Staff" and "Medical Staff"; the impact of occupational stress on health, such as "high blood pressure", "sub-health" and "tight reaction". The period of 2001-2012 was an outburst period of domestic occupational stress research. During 2012-2017, the number of research literatures increased continuously.

Conclusion Cite Space software can visually display the hot spots and trends of study on occupational stress in our country. Occupational stress is still one of important occupational diseases and needs to be paid more attention to in the future.