Mapping Five Decades of Research Trends on Mathematical Word Problems in School Education: Insights from Scopus (1974-2025)
Marfi Ario (a*), Suhendra (a**), Al Jupri (a), Elah Nurlaelah (a)

a) Study Program of Mathematics Education, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Indonesia.
*marfiario[at]upi.edu
**suhendra[at]upi.edu

Abstract

Mathematical word problems play a pivotal role in mathematics education by enhancing students^ problem-solving skills, logical reasoning, and analytical thinking. This study provides a comprehensive bibliometric overview of research on mathematical word problems in school education spanning five decades. A total of 1,024 publications indexed in the Scopus database from 1974 to 2025 were analyzed using Bibliometrix and Biblioshiny in R Studio. The findings reveal a steady increase in publications from 1974 to 2024, indicating sustained scholarly interest in this topic. The Journal of Educational Psychology was identified as the most prolific source, Powell S.R. as the most productive author, and the United States as the leading contributor. Co-occurrence analysis highlighted ^problem solving^ as the most frequent theme associated with word problems. Additionally, the article ^Word problems in mathematics education: a survey^ by Verschaffel L. emerged as the most cited publication, underscoring its foundational influence in this research domain. These results offer valuable insights into the intellectual landscape and evolving trends of mathematical word problem research, providing a useful reference for guiding future studies and informing effective instructional practices in mathematics education.

Keywords: bibliometric, mathematical word problems, mathematics learning, school education.

Topic: Mathematics and Mathematics Education