Tracking accelerated knowledge production in educational leadership and management: Trajectories,drivers,and impact in Asian research,2000–2025

Abstract

Reviews of research have noted the dominance of Anglo-American scholarship in educational leadership and management into the early twenty-first century. Although the field has become increasingly geographically diverse over the past 15 years, limited attention has been given to the drivers shaping this accelerated growth or to the impact on the nature of knowledge produced. This review examines changes in the publication trajectories of Asian EDLM research between 2000 and 2025 and analyzes the conditions supporting this expansion in knowledge production. Drawing on a conceptual framework of scholarly knowledge production, the study analyzed 3,903 Scopus-indexed EDLM journal articles authored in by scholars Asian societies between 2000 and 2025. Longitudinal bibliometric analyses documented changes in the publication volume, citation impact, topical focus, and geographic distribution of Asian EDLM scholarship over time, while co-authorship network analyses examined the evolution of collaboration structures and the emergence of influential research networks. The findings reveal rapid growth and diversification in Asian EDLM scholarship, alongside the maturation of national and regional research networks. Institutional publication incentives, regional coordination initiatives, and asymmetric collaboration structures supported cumulative knowledge production, although regional disparities persist. While participation by Asian scholars in established research programs has strengthened the field's empirical foundations, the findings also reveal a need for greater epistemic diversity, specifically the generation and empirical exploration of indigenous theories.