A Bibliometric Analysis of Older Adult Population Research Published in Biological Research for Nursing

Abstract

The global increase in older adults places greater demands on understanding how body tissues change structurally and physiologically with age. Given this demographic trend and Biological Research for Nursing’s focus on biological or biobehavioral outcomes, we analyzed the scientific production and impact, including citation count, of 87 relevant research papers published in this journal between 2002 and 2024. Using the OpenAlex database and VOSviewer, we found that the five papers published in 2018 accrued the highest citation count of 227. Among 81 articles, 12 research fronts were identified, with physical activity, frailty, sleep, and/or cognition included in several of them. A co-occurrence network of 102 authors’ terms/keywords generated five clusters, where the three terms with the largest nodes were medicine, internal medicine, and physical therapy. Terms associated with more current research papers included inflammation, quality of life, economics, and grip strength. Regarding location, the United States dominated the country network but showed strong collaborative links with European and Asian nations. The author network consisted of 398 authors; however, less than 10% demonstrated strong collaborations. Therefore, Biological Research for Nursing, with its focus on nursing perspectives regarding aging-related biological and behavioral dimensions of health, serves as a key platform for evidence-based, holistic gerontological health care.