Sistematik Derlemeler ve Meta Analiz

Mapping Educational Leadership Research: A Bibliometric Analysis of Global Collaboration, Intellectual Structure, and Thematic Evolution (2000–2025)

Cilt: 16 Sayı: 2 24 Haziran 2026
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Mapping Educational Leadership Research: A Bibliometric Analysis of Global Collaboration, Intellectual Structure, and Thematic Evolution (2000–2025)

Öz

Education leadership research has grown rapidly in the last 20 years and has resulted in a diverse, multinational body of research; however, studies integrating the analysis of collaboration networks, intellectual foundations, and thematic trendlines are still limited. The purpose of this study was to address this gap through an extensive bibliometric analysis of educational leadership research published between 2000 and 2025. Using 5,353 peer-reviewed journal articles from Scopus, the study employed multiple bibliometric techniques (co-authorship, co-citation, citation analysis, and keyword co-occurrence analysis) with VOSviewer to delineate the global structure and growth of the field. The results indicate that the overall collaborative network of authorship is distributed in an extremely dense/collapsed manner, and the dominant regions were Australia, Canada, the UK, and the US, along with a rapidly expanding research cluster in Asia and the Middle East. In terms of intellectual networks, the co-citation analysis produced a stable intellectual core comprised of instructional, transformational, and distributed leadership theories and exposed an increasing integration of social justice, equity, and teacher well-being as areas of research. The citation analysis indicated that foundational research from the early 2000s continues to have a lasting impact on newer research, while more recent research has begun to contain some focus on addressing contemporary problems, such as crisis leadership and digital transformation. The results of the keyword co-occurrence analysis show evidence that there has been a recent thematic shift away from research focused on school reform and instructional leadership and more toward topics of equity, instructional improvement, teacher professionalism, and pandemic-related issues. By integrating multiple bibliometric techniques into a single study, this study provides a multidimensional overview of educational leadership research and valuable insights to education researchers and policymakers, as well as to leadership preparation program developers.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Etik Beyan

Ethics approval was not required for this study as it is a bibliometric analysis based on publicly available data and did not involve human participants or animals.

Kaynakça

  1. Abdullah, K., Hashim, M., & Aziz, F. (2020). A 39 Years (1980-2019) Bibliometric Analysis of Safety Leadership Research. TEST Engineering and Management, 83, 4526-4542. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344781099_A_39_Years_1980-2019_Bibliometric_Analysis_of_Safety_Leadership_Research.
  2. Aboagye, S., & Ayikue, M. (2025). A Bibliometric Review of Research Trends in Educational Leadershi. British Journal of Education, 13(2), 30-43. https://doi.org/10.37745/bje.2013/vol13n23043.
  3. Alazmi, A. A., & Hammad, W. (2021). Modeling the relationship between principal leadership and teacher professional learning in Kuwait: The mediating effects of Trust and Teacher Agency. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 51(5), 1141-1160. https://doi.org/10.1177/17411432211038007.
  4. Alsharefeen, R., & Al-Deaibes, M. (2025). Between accountability and agency: a comparative analysis of faculty performance evaluation policies in the UAE. Cogent Education, 12(5), https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2025.2538964.
  5. Alzoraiki, M., Ahmad, A., Ateeq, A., & Milhem, M. (2024). The role of transformational leadership in enhancing school culture and teaching performance in Yemeni public schools. Frontiers in Education, 9, https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2024.1413607.
  6. Asamoah, M. K., Agyekum, B., Adu-Marfo, A. O., & Eshun, S. N. (2025). Educational leadership flaws during the COVID-19 pandemic: implications for online learning in the 21 st century. Discover Education, 4, 350. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44217-025-00594-4.
  7. Atha, V. (2025). Early childhood education and social change: a literature review . Discover Education, 4, 394. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44217-025-00832-9.
  8. Bellibaş, M. Ş., Polatcan, M., Özcan, M., & Akyürek, M. İ. (2024). School leadership in a non-western context: how is paternalistic leadership related to teacher well-being and commitment in collectivist versus individualistic school cultures? Journal of Educational Administration, 62(5), 433-447. https://doi.org/10.1108/JEA-01-2024-0002.

Ayrıntılar

Birincil Dil

İngilizce

Konular

Eğitim Yönetimi

Bölüm

Sistematik Derlemeler ve Meta Analiz

Yayımlanma Tarihi

24 Haziran 2026

Gönderilme Tarihi

29 Aralık 2025

Kabul Tarihi

1 Haziran 2026

Yayımlandığı Sayı

Yıl 2026 Cilt: 16 Sayı: 2

Kaynak Göster

APA
Ayhan, İ. (2026). Mapping Educational Leadership Research: A Bibliometric Analysis of Global Collaboration, Intellectual Structure, and Thematic Evolution (2000–2025). Anadolu Journal of Educational Sciences International, 16(2), 839-869. https://doi.org/10.18039/ajesi.1851231
AMA
1.Ayhan İ. Mapping Educational Leadership Research: A Bibliometric Analysis of Global Collaboration, Intellectual Structure, and Thematic Evolution (2000–2025). AJESI. 2026;16(2):839-869. doi:10.18039/ajesi.1851231
Chicago
Ayhan, İrfan. 2026. “Mapping Educational Leadership Research: A Bibliometric Analysis of Global Collaboration, Intellectual Structure, and Thematic Evolution (2000–2025)”. Anadolu Journal of Educational Sciences International 16 (2): 839-69. https://doi.org/10.18039/ajesi.1851231.
EndNote
Ayhan İ (01 Haziran 2026) Mapping Educational Leadership Research: A Bibliometric Analysis of Global Collaboration, Intellectual Structure, and Thematic Evolution (2000–2025). Anadolu Journal of Educational Sciences International 16 2 839–869.
IEEE
[1]İ. Ayhan, “Mapping Educational Leadership Research: A Bibliometric Analysis of Global Collaboration, Intellectual Structure, and Thematic Evolution (2000–2025)”, AJESI, c. 16, sy 2, ss. 839–869, Haz. 2026, doi: 10.18039/ajesi.1851231.
ISNAD
Ayhan, İrfan. “Mapping Educational Leadership Research: A Bibliometric Analysis of Global Collaboration, Intellectual Structure, and Thematic Evolution (2000–2025)”. Anadolu Journal of Educational Sciences International 16/2 (01 Haziran 2026): 839-869. https://doi.org/10.18039/ajesi.1851231.
JAMA
1.Ayhan İ. Mapping Educational Leadership Research: A Bibliometric Analysis of Global Collaboration, Intellectual Structure, and Thematic Evolution (2000–2025). AJESI. 2026;16:839–869.
MLA
Ayhan, İrfan. “Mapping Educational Leadership Research: A Bibliometric Analysis of Global Collaboration, Intellectual Structure, and Thematic Evolution (2000–2025)”. Anadolu Journal of Educational Sciences International, c. 16, sy 2, Haziran 2026, ss. 839-6, doi:10.18039/ajesi.1851231.
Vancouver
1.İrfan Ayhan. Mapping Educational Leadership Research: A Bibliometric Analysis of Global Collaboration, Intellectual Structure, and Thematic Evolution (2000–2025). AJESI. 01 Haziran 2026;16(2):839-6. doi:10.18039/ajesi.1851231