Mapping the Research Terrain of Digital Multimodal Composing in L2 Contexts: A Scientometric Review

Abstract

Despite growing research interest in digital multimodal composing (DMC) in L2 contexts, its developmental trajectory remains largely underexplored. To address this gap, we conducted a scientometric review using CiteSpace on 128 publications indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection. Our analysis reveals a rapid growth in DMC research over the past decade, especially in the last two years. Document co-citation analysis identified six core themes, including DMC's impact on writing, assessment rubrics, language learning affordances, collaborative task, learner perceptions, and pedagogical guidelines. While research focus has remained relatively stable, co-citation burst analysis delineated emerging trends comprising pedagogical values of DMC, assessment rubrics, and collaborative composing processes. Our review not only charts the evolution of this field but also offers directions for future inquiry by identifying key research gaps through a novel scientometric lens.