Leadership in Islamic Education: A Bibliometric Analysis of Scopus-Indexed Research 2016-2025

Abstract

This study aimed to map the development of research on leadership in Islamic education in Scopus-indexed publications from 2016 to 2025. Specifically, it sought to identify publication trends, examine methodological approaches, analyze the contributions and citation impact of countries, institutions, and authors, investigate international co-authorship patterns, and identify the major thematic clusters and emerging research directions in the field. A bibliometric approach was employed to analyze 229 articles retrieved from the Scopus database using a TITLE-ABS-KEY search and predefined filters for publication period, document type, source type, and language. The analysis combined descriptive statistics with VOSviewer to examine publication patterns, citation performance, collaboration networks, and keyword co-occurrence. The findings indicate that publications peaked in 2025, with 49 articles. Qualitative research constituted the largest methodological category, accounting for 38% of the publications. Indonesia contributed the highest number of publications (171 articles) and accumulated 989 citations, whereas China recorded the highest average citations per article among the ten leading countries, at 17.8. Pelita Harapan University and Monash University ranked highest in institutional productivity, with six publications each, while Purwanto A. was the most productive author, also with six publications. Keyword co-occurrence analysis revealed six thematic clusters concerning leadership, school management, Islamic educational contexts, higher education, pesantren, and education systems. These findings provide a comprehensive descriptive overview of the intellectual and thematic development of leadership research in Islamic education over the past decade. The study also identifies opportunities to expand international research collaboration, improve geographical representation, and investigate underexplored themes to strengthen the global visibility and development of the field.