Reframing child abuse and neglect research through a social work lens: a global bibliometric and thematic…

Systematic reviewFrontiers in pediatrics· 2026

Reframing child abuse and neglect research through a social work lens: a global bibliometric and thematic evolution analysis (2000-2025).

Fatih Cebeci

Child Abuse PediatricsSystematic reviewQ1IF 2.2

Child abuse and neglect publication output grew steadily, about 5% annually, from 2000 to 2025.

Reframing child abuse and neglect research through a social work lens: a global bibliometric and thematic evolution analysis (2000-2025).

Fatih Cebeci

Frontiers in pediatrics · 2026 · Q1 in Pediatrics

Background

Child neglect and abuse research has expanded rapidly, yet its development has rarely been mapped through a social work lens centered on child welfare and child protection systems.

Methods

Records were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection and Scopus, merged, deduplicated, and screened, yielding a final dataset of 6,132 journal articles and reviews.

n = 6,132 journal articles and reviews

Results

Research output on this topic increased by roughly 5% each year over 25 years.

2000

109public

2025

362public

More results

Foster care emerged as a prominent motor theme, whereas juvenile justice appeared as a niche theme.

“

Conclusion · 1 of 2

The findings demonstrate that the field has expanded while progressively re-centering on welfare and protection systems.

Conclusion · 2 of 2

The study provides an empirical baseline for future interdisciplinary research and practice-oriented knowledge translation.