The historical journey of recreation research: A bibliometric study (1955-2022)

Abstract

The notion of recreation is broad and intertwined with many fields. According to the bibliometric analysis method, the study's goal is to examine studies in the international literature in which recreation and other areas related to recreation (health, environment, education, sports, tourism, game, culture, economy, art, and landscape architecture) are used together. On February 4, 2023, 51,235 studies from 1955 to 2022 were analyzed and categorized in terms of bibliometric indicators in the Scopus database, with the limitation of title, abstract, and keywords. "Co-authorship" and "co-existence" analyses were performed in the "VOSviewer" software to perform the bibliometric analysis and visualize the data. According to the bibliographic analysis, the most studies on the subject are in the field of recreation and health (13,696), recreation and tourism studies have increased in recent years, but recreation and game studies have decreased significantly. Most studies on the subject were published in the field of recreation and health in 2022 (752), and the "Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport" magazine included the most studies in the fields of health, environment, and sports. Upon examination of the network map, it was found that the most frequently utilized keyword was "physical activity."It is believed that the study will outline a roadmap for future research endeavors.