Mapping the terrain of social media misinformation: A scientometric exploration of global research

The rise of social media has enabled unrestricted information sharing, regardless of its accuracy. Unfortunately, this has also resulted in the widespread dissemination of misinformation. This study aims to provide a comprehensive scientometric analysis under the PRISMA paradigm to clarify the repet...

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Main Authors: Jian Wang, Yujia Zhai, Fakhar Shahzad
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-02-01
Series:Acta Psychologica
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001691825000046
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author Jian Wang
Yujia Zhai
Fakhar Shahzad
author_facet Jian Wang
Yujia Zhai
Fakhar Shahzad
author_sort Jian Wang
collection DOAJ
description The rise of social media has enabled unrestricted information sharing, regardless of its accuracy. Unfortunately, this has also resulted in the widespread dissemination of misinformation. This study aims to provide a comprehensive scientometric analysis under the PRISMA paradigm to clarify the repetitive trajectory of misinformation on social media in the current digital age. In this study, 3724 publications on social media misinformation from the Web of Science between January 2010 and February 2024 were analyzed scientifically and metrically using CiteSpace software. The findings reveal a sharp increase in annual publication output starting from 2015. The United States of America and China have made more significant contributions in publication volume and global collaborations than other nations. The top five keywords with high frequency are social media, fake news, information, misinformation, and news. In contrast to a brief review of existing articles, this study provides an exhaustive review of annual scientific research output, journals, countries, institutions, contributors, highly cited papers, and keywords in social media misinformation research. The developmental stages of social media misinformation research are charted, current hot topics are discussed, and avenues for future research are suggested.
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spelling doaj-art-1f86c3f6c8364a2db27c93469895a19b2025-01-12T05:24:03ZengElsevierActa Psychologica0001-69182025-02-01252104691Mapping the terrain of social media misinformation: A scientometric exploration of global researchJian Wang0Yujia Zhai1Fakhar Shahzad2College of Economics and Management, Zhengzhou University of Light Industry, Zhengzhou, ChinaCollege of Economics and Management, Zhengzhou University of Light Industry, Zhengzhou, ChinaResearch Institute of Business Analytics and Supply Chain Management, College of Management, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China; Corresponding author.The rise of social media has enabled unrestricted information sharing, regardless of its accuracy. Unfortunately, this has also resulted in the widespread dissemination of misinformation. This study aims to provide a comprehensive scientometric analysis under the PRISMA paradigm to clarify the repetitive trajectory of misinformation on social media in the current digital age. In this study, 3724 publications on social media misinformation from the Web of Science between January 2010 and February 2024 were analyzed scientifically and metrically using CiteSpace software. The findings reveal a sharp increase in annual publication output starting from 2015. The United States of America and China have made more significant contributions in publication volume and global collaborations than other nations. The top five keywords with high frequency are social media, fake news, information, misinformation, and news. In contrast to a brief review of existing articles, this study provides an exhaustive review of annual scientific research output, journals, countries, institutions, contributors, highly cited papers, and keywords in social media misinformation research. The developmental stages of social media misinformation research are charted, current hot topics are discussed, and avenues for future research are suggested.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001691825000046Social mediaMisinformationFake newsCiteSpacePRISMA
spellingShingle Jian Wang
Yujia Zhai
Fakhar Shahzad
Mapping the terrain of social media misinformation: A scientometric exploration of global research
Acta Psychologica
Social media
Misinformation
Fake news
CiteSpace
PRISMA
title Mapping the terrain of social media misinformation: A scientometric exploration of global research
title_full Mapping the terrain of social media misinformation: A scientometric exploration of global research
title_fullStr Mapping the terrain of social media misinformation: A scientometric exploration of global research
title_full_unstemmed Mapping the terrain of social media misinformation: A scientometric exploration of global research
title_short Mapping the terrain of social media misinformation: A scientometric exploration of global research
title_sort mapping the terrain of social media misinformation a scientometric exploration of global research
topic Social media
Misinformation
Fake news
CiteSpace
PRISMA
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001691825000046
work_keys_str_mv AT jianwang mappingtheterrainofsocialmediamisinformationascientometricexplorationofglobalresearch
AT yujiazhai mappingtheterrainofsocialmediamisinformationascientometricexplorationofglobalresearch
AT fakharshahzad mappingtheterrainofsocialmediamisinformationascientometricexplorationofglobalresearch