Mathematical reasoning: Bibliometric analysis of the literature

Abstract

The aim of this study is to examine the literature on mathematical reasoning. In the WoS (Web of Science) database, 545 publications published in different journals until January 2021 were analyzed by using the bibliometric analysis method. The most used keywords by the authors, bibliographic couplings, and common citations were analyzed and visualized through the Vosviewer software. As a result of the analyses, the most common keywords used by the authors in publications related to the field were found to be “mathematical reasoning”, “problem solving”, and “mathematical thinking”. The prominent universities in the publications in the field of mathematical reasoning were determined as “Brigham Young University”, “Michigan University”, and “Alicante University”. In addition, the most influential journals in the field were “Journal for Research in Mathematics Education”, “Educational Studies in Mathematics”, and “Journal of Educational Psychology”. The most influential authors in the field were “Schoenfeld, A. H.”, “Carpenter T. P.”, and “Geary, D. C.”. Finally, when the publications in the field were analyzed, the prominent countries were found to be the USA, Turkey, and Sweden ; and Indonesia and People’s Republic of China stand out as the origin of publications that have contributed to the field in recent years.