@article{ART003352235},
author={Seong-Gwon, Cho and Jongwoo Kim},
title={Where is Korean Human Rights Research Heading?: Analyzing Interdisciplinary Research Trends via Topic Modeling, 2001~2025},
journal={Journal of Human Rights Studies},
issn={2635-4632},
year={2026},
volume={9},
number={1},
pages={1-34},
doi={10.22976/JHRS.2026.9.1.1}
TY - JOUR
AU - Seong-Gwon, Cho
AU - Jongwoo Kim
TI - Where is Korean Human Rights Research Heading?: Analyzing Interdisciplinary Research Trends via Topic Modeling, 2001~2025
JO - Journal of Human Rights Studies
PY - 2026
VL - 9
IS - 1
PB - Korean Association of Human Rights Studies
SP - 1
EP - 34
SN - 2635-4632
AB - Research on human rights in South Korea has grown steadily over the past two decades across multiple disciplines, including law, political science, education, and social welfare. However, few attempts have been made to provide a comprehensive, cross-disciplinary overview of the field, as existing trend analyses have been limited to individual disciplines and based on relatively small samples. This study analyzes the thematic structure and temporal shifts in Korean human rights research by applying Contextualized Topic Modeling (CTM) to 10,739 journal articles published between 2001 and 2025, retrieved from the Korea Citation Index (KCI) using the keyword “human rights” (인권). The analysis identified 49 research topics, reclassified into eight broader categories. Topics in traditionally dominant normative and institutional areas-such as constitutional law, criminal justice, and international human rights-maintained a high overall share but exhibited a gradual decline. In contrast, topics tied to everyday life, including education and children, welfare and care, and discrimination and minorities, showed a sustained increase. Emerging issues such as climate and the environment, artificial intelligence, and anti-discrimination legislation were also found to be gaining momentum, albeit from a small base. An importance- performance analysis (IPA) framework was further applied to map the standing and trajectory of each topic across four quadrants, identifying areas of expansion, stabilization, and contraction. This study empirically charts the macro level landscape and evolving directions of human rights research in South Korea through large scale, interdisciplinary bibliometric analysis.
KW - Human Rights Studies;Research Trends;Text Mining;Topic Modeling;Interdisciplinary Studies
DO - 10.22976/JHRS.2026.9.1.1
ER -
Seong-Gwon, Cho and Jongwoo Kim. (2026). Where is Korean Human Rights Research Heading?: Analyzing Interdisciplinary Research Trends via Topic Modeling, 2001~2025. Journal of Human Rights Studies, 9(1), 1-34.
Seong-Gwon, Cho and Jongwoo Kim. 2026, "Where is Korean Human Rights Research Heading?: Analyzing Interdisciplinary Research Trends via Topic Modeling, 2001~2025", Journal of Human Rights Studies, vol.9, no.1 pp.1-34. Available from: doi:10.22976/JHRS.2026.9.1.1
Seong-Gwon, Cho, Jongwoo Kim "Where is Korean Human Rights Research Heading?: Analyzing Interdisciplinary Research Trends via Topic Modeling, 2001~2025" Journal of Human Rights Studies 9.1 pp.1-34 (2026) : 1.
Seong-Gwon, Cho, Jongwoo Kim. Where is Korean Human Rights Research Heading?: Analyzing Interdisciplinary Research Trends via Topic Modeling, 2001~2025. 2026; 9(1), 1-34. Available from: doi:10.22976/JHRS.2026.9.1.1
Seong-Gwon, Cho and Jongwoo Kim. "Where is Korean Human Rights Research Heading?: Analyzing Interdisciplinary Research Trends via Topic Modeling, 2001~2025" Journal of Human Rights Studies 9, no.1 (2026) : 1-34.doi: 10.22976/JHRS.2026.9.1.1
Seong-Gwon, Cho; Jongwoo Kim. Where is Korean Human Rights Research Heading?: Analyzing Interdisciplinary Research Trends via Topic Modeling, 2001~2025. Journal of Human Rights Studies, 9(1), 1-34. doi: 10.22976/JHRS.2026.9.1.1
Seong-Gwon, Cho; Jongwoo Kim. Where is Korean Human Rights Research Heading?: Analyzing Interdisciplinary Research Trends via Topic Modeling, 2001~2025. Journal of Human Rights Studies. 2026; 9(1) 1-34. doi: 10.22976/JHRS.2026.9.1.1
Seong-Gwon, Cho, Jongwoo Kim. Where is Korean Human Rights Research Heading?: Analyzing Interdisciplinary Research Trends via Topic Modeling, 2001~2025. 2026; 9(1), 1-34. Available from: doi:10.22976/JHRS.2026.9.1.1
Seong-Gwon, Cho and Jongwoo Kim. "Where is Korean Human Rights Research Heading?: Analyzing Interdisciplinary Research Trends via Topic Modeling, 2001~2025" Journal of Human Rights Studies 9, no.1 (2026) : 1-34.doi: 10.22976/JHRS.2026.9.1.1
