VOSviewer-Assisted Scoping Review — Bibliometric Mapping Within Scoping Reviews
VOSviewer-Assisted Scoping Review · Also known as: VOSviewer scoping review, bibliometric-enhanced scoping review, VOS-assisted scoping review, science-mapping scoping review
A VOSviewer-assisted scoping review integrates the structured, broad-mapping purpose of a scoping review with VOSviewer's bibliometric visualization capabilities. After standard database searching and eligibility screening, the retained records are exported to VOSviewer, which produces co-authorship, keyword co-occurrence, and citation-based cluster maps. These visual outputs guide thematic synthesis, reveal intellectual structure, and make the scope of a field immediately transparent.
Read the full method
Sign in with a free account to read this section.
Method map
The neighbourhood of related methods — select a node to explore.
When to use it
Use a VOSviewer-assisted scoping review when the goal is to map the intellectual landscape of a broad topic, identify research gaps, or characterise a fast-growing or heterogeneous field where a conventional narrative or systematic review would be premature or too narrow. It is particularly valuable for large literature sets (200+ records) where manual thematic clustering would be impractical. Do not use it as a substitute for a full systematic review when an effectiveness or safety question requires rigorous quality appraisal and pooled estimates; also avoid it when the available literature is too small (fewer than 30–50 records) for meaningful VOSviewer clustering, as sparse networks produce uninformative maps.
Strengths & limitations
- Handles large, heterogeneous literature sets efficiently by revealing thematic clusters visually rather than through exhaustive manual reading.
- VOSviewer's overlay visualization shows temporal shifts, helping researchers identify emerging versus declining topics.
- Combines quantitative (bibliometric) and qualitative (content analysis) perspectives, increasing analytic transparency.
- Keyword co-occurrence maps can validate and refine the initial scoping question by revealing terms the researcher had not anticipated.
- Highly reproducible: VOSviewer parameters and thresholds are reportable, making the mapping step auditable.
- VOSviewer clusters reflect co-occurrence patterns in indexed metadata, not the conceptual coherence of topics — clusters may split or merge in ways that require expert interpretation.
- Coverage depends on the databases searched; literature in non-indexed journals, grey literature, and non-English sources is systematically underrepresented.
- Scoping reviews do not appraise study quality, so the mapped landscape includes weak and strong evidence without distinction.
- VOSviewer requires records to have sufficient keyword or reference data; records with missing metadata degrade cluster quality.
Frequently asked
Do I need to register a protocol before conducting a VOSviewer-assisted scoping review?
Protocol registration is recommended (e.g., on OSF) but not mandatory for scoping reviews. Registration increases transparency and reduces the risk of post-hoc changes to eligibility criteria or bibliometric parameters. If you register, specify the VOSviewer parameters you plan to use.
Which database format should I export for VOSviewer?
VOSviewer accepts plain-text files from Web of Science, RIS files from Scopus or PubMed, and several other formats. Export as many metadata fields as possible — particularly author keywords, references, and abstracts — since richer metadata produces more informative co-occurrence and coupling maps.
How many records do I need for VOSviewer maps to be meaningful?
There is no fixed minimum, but fewer than 30–50 records typically yield sparse networks with no interpretable clusters. For keyword co-occurrence maps, a minimum keyword frequency threshold of 3–5 occurrences is common; at very small sample sizes even low thresholds may leave only a handful of qualifying terms.
Can VOSviewer replace the full-text screening step of a scoping review?
No. VOSviewer operates on bibliographic metadata (titles, keywords, references); it does not read or appraise full-text content. Full-text screening against eligibility criteria must still be performed by human reviewers. VOSviewer aids thematic synthesis after screening, not the screening itself.
How do I cite VOSviewer in my methods section?
Cite the original software paper: van Eck, N. J., & Waltman, L. (2010). Software survey: VOSviewer, a computer program for bibliometric mapping. Scientometrics, 84(2), 523–538. Also report the software version used.
Sources
- van Eck, N. J., & Waltman, L. (2010). Software survey: VOSviewer, a computer program for bibliometric mapping. Scientometrics, 84(2), 523–538. DOI: 10.1007/s11192-009-0146-3 ↗
- Peters, M. D. J., Godfrey, C. M., Khalil, H., McInerney, P., Parker, D., & Sousa, C. B. (2015). Guidance for conducting systematic scoping reviews. International Journal of Evidence-Based Healthcare, 13(3), 141–146. DOI: 10.1097/XEB.0000000000000050 ↗
How to cite this page
ScholarGate. (2026, June 3). VOSviewer-Assisted Scoping Review. ScholarGate. https://scholargate.app/en/scientometrics/vosviewer-assisted-scoping-review
Which method?
Set this method beside its closest kin and read them side by side — the library lays the books on the table; the choice is yours.
- Bibliographic CouplingBibliometrics↔ compare
- Bibliometric AnalysisScientometrics↔ compare
- Co-Citation AnalysisBibliometrics↔ compare
- Scoping ReviewScientometrics↔ compare
- Systematic Literature ReviewScientometrics↔ compare