The Landscape of Digital Natives Research: A Bibliometric and Science Mapping Analysis

Abstract

This article provides a panoramic view of the research undertaken so far in the field of digital natives to highlight important trends, examine the intellectual structure and provide recommendations for future research. The study uses 983 publications from the Scopus database to analyse the productivity, impact and research performance of nations, journals, authors and institutions using indicators such as impact factor, h-index and citation counts. This review study uses bibliometric and science mapping analysis to assess the most recent developments and trends in ‘digital native’ research. VOSviewer is used to conduct keyword network analysis, co-authorship analysis and reference co-citation analysis, followed by SciMAT analysis to provide an evolution map and a cluster of themes. The analysis identified key contributors to the field, high-impact papers and geographic areas where field research is concentrated. The main research gaps were then identified, indicating future research avenues. The findings of this study will provide fresh higher-level insights into the developing field of digital native research for educators, computing executives, business managers and research scholars. Such information would be useful in establishing digital native recruitment tactics by the respective industry. The research will also aid in the development of policies for digital natives.