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A bibliometric and thematic analysis of successful educational leadership research, 1980–2025

Yongli Liu & Junjun Chen

Educational Management Administration & Leadership2026https://doi.org/10.1177/17411432261423473article
AJG 2ABDC B
Weight
0.50

Abstract

This study combined bibliometric techniques and thematic analysis to calculate the meta-data of successful educational leadership documents published between 1980 and 2025. The present study involved 409 documents. Bibliometric methods allowed for delineating the descriptive trends, uncovering the underlying intellectual structure, identifying impactful themes and suggesting new research directions in successful educational leadership. Thematic analysis enabled revealing the thematic evolution of themes across three periods of its development. The combination of bibliometric techniques and a thematic analysis provided broader overviews and deeper insights into the historical, current and future development of successful educational leadership research.

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https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1177/17411432261423473

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@article{yongli2026,
  title        = {{A bibliometric and thematic analysis of successful educational leadership research, 1980–2025}},
  author       = {Yongli Liu & Junjun Chen},
  journal      = {Educational Management Administration & Leadership},
  year         = {2026},
  doi          = {https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1177/17411432261423473},
}

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A bibliometric and thematic analysis of successful educational leadership research, 1980–2025

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Evidence weight

0.50

Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40

F · citation impact0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20
M · momentum0.50 × 0.15 = 0.07
V · venue signal0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03
R · text relevance †0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20

† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.