Decoding Algorithms for a Sustainable Future: A Bibliometric Analysis of Social Media Studies.

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Title: Decoding Algorithms for a Sustainable Future: A Bibliometric Analysis of Social Media Studies.
Authors: Agrawal, Navya1 agrawalnavya10@gmail.com, Gautam, Arun2 arun.gautam@jecrcu.edu.in
Source: International Journal of Special Education. 2026 Special Issue, Vol. 41, p52-67. 16p.
Subject Terms: *Algorithms, *Social media, *Machine learning, *Artificial intelligence, Sustainability, Big data, Sentiment analysis, Sustainable development
Abstract: This study examines the influence of social media algorithms on through a bibliometric and thematic analysis of recent scholarly literature. The investigation reveals a rapidly growing and highly interdisciplinary research domain that integrates sustainability with advanced digital technologies, particularly artificial intelligence, machine learning and big data analytics. Publication trend shows consistent annual growth, with a sharp rise in output from 2020 onwards and a peak in 2025, indicating that the field has transitioned from a nascent to an expansion phase. Keyword analysis highlights dominant themes such as "sustainability", and "sustainable development," "social media," "algorithms," and "sentiment analysis," underscoring a shift towards algorithmically mediated, data driven approaches to understanding sustainable behavior. The study further identifies that research is concentrated in a few key outlets, characterized by moderate international collaboration, and driven by institutions in Asis and the Middle East, with uneven citation impact across regions. Emerging trends point toward applied, problem solving research on climate change, big data, healthcare, supply chains, and urban system. The findings suggest that social media algorithms are increasingly shaping the visibility, framing and reinforcement of sustainable choices, but also raise concerns about greenwashing, echo chambers and the need for more transparent, ethically designed "sustainable algorithms." The paper concludes by calling for more theory driven, behaviorally grounded research and stronger policy oriented collaboration to harness algorithmic infrastructures for genuine sustainability outcomes rather than merely symbolic or consumerist green behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of International Journal of Special Education is the property of International Journal of Special Education and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Education Research Complete
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Agrawal%2C+Navya%22">Agrawal, Navya</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo><i> agrawalnavya10@gmail.com</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Gautam%2C+Arun%22">Gautam, Arun</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo><i> arun.gautam@jecrcu.edu.in</i>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22International+Journal+of+Special+Education%22">International Journal of Special Education</searchLink>. 2026 Special Issue, Vol. 41, p52-67. 16p.
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  Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Algorithms%22">Algorithms</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Social+media%22">Social media</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Machine+learning%22">Machine learning</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Artificial+intelligence%22">Artificial intelligence</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Sustainability%22">Sustainability</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Big+data%22">Big data</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Sentiment+analysis%22">Sentiment analysis</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Sustainable+development%22">Sustainable development</searchLink>
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  Data: This study examines the influence of social media algorithms on through a bibliometric and thematic analysis of recent scholarly literature. The investigation reveals a rapidly growing and highly interdisciplinary research domain that integrates sustainability with advanced digital technologies, particularly artificial intelligence, machine learning and big data analytics. Publication trend shows consistent annual growth, with a sharp rise in output from 2020 onwards and a peak in 2025, indicating that the field has transitioned from a nascent to an expansion phase. Keyword analysis highlights dominant themes such as "sustainability", and "sustainable development," "social media," "algorithms," and "sentiment analysis," underscoring a shift towards algorithmically mediated, data driven approaches to understanding sustainable behavior. The study further identifies that research is concentrated in a few key outlets, characterized by moderate international collaboration, and driven by institutions in Asis and the Middle East, with uneven citation impact across regions. Emerging trends point toward applied, problem solving research on climate change, big data, healthcare, supply chains, and urban system. The findings suggest that social media algorithms are increasingly shaping the visibility, framing and reinforcement of sustainable choices, but also raise concerns about greenwashing, echo chambers and the need for more transparent, ethically designed "sustainable algorithms." The paper concludes by calling for more theory driven, behaviorally grounded research and stronger policy oriented collaboration to harness algorithmic infrastructures for genuine sustainability outcomes rather than merely symbolic or consumerist green behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of International Journal of Special Education is the property of International Journal of Special Education and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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RecordInfo BibRecord:
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    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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        PageCount: 16
        StartPage: 52
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      – SubjectFull: Algorithms
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Social media
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Machine learning
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Artificial intelligence
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Sustainability
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Big data
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Sentiment analysis
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      – SubjectFull: Sustainable development
        Type: general
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      – TitleFull: Decoding Algorithms for a Sustainable Future: A Bibliometric Analysis of Social Media Studies.
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            NameFull: Agrawal, Navya
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            NameFull: Gautam, Arun
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            – D: 07
              M: 01
              Text: 2026 Special Issue
              Type: published
              Y: 2026
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              Value: 41
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