The structure and operation of Confucius Institute (CI), as an organization promoting Chinese language and culture,have attracted much scholarship in recent years. Based on research papers revolving the themes of CI published from 2005 to 2017, this paper uses the visualization software CiteSpace to identify the key topics and disciplinary areas of CI studies. It is found that the key topics scoped into CI research include the Chinese language teaching in CI, the sustainable development of CI, the impact of CI on China’s soft power and public diplomacy, the economic and business functions of CI, and the issues of CI in the context of the Belt and Road Initiative. It reveals that the CI studies constitute a loose research area with multiple research focus and cross-disciplinary methodologies. For future CI studies, the author proposes that more academic endeavors from other disciplines should be made in order to conduct broader, more in-depth and more sustainable research in this field.
王 琦. 2005～2017年孔子学院研究的关键话题及学科跨度——基于CiteSpace可视化图谱的分析[J]. 语言战略研究, 2018, 3(6): 42-55.
Wang Qi. The Key Topics and Disciplinary Areas of Confucius Institute Research from 2005 to 2017. , 2018, 3(6): 42-55.
Ding, S. and R. A. Saunders. 2006. Talking up China: An analysis of China’s rising cultural power and global promotion of the Chinese language. East Asia 23 (2), 3-33.
Gil, J. 2008. The promotion of Chinese language learning and China’s soft power. Asian Social Science 4 (10), 116-122.
Gil, J. 2015. China’s cultural projection: A discussion of the Confucius Institutes. China: An International Journal 13 (1), 200-226.
Hartig, F. 2015. Communicating China to the world: Confucius Institutes and China’s strategic narratives. Politics 35 (3), 245-258.
Hartig, F. 2016. How China understands public diplomacy: The importance of national image for national interests. International Studies Review 18 (4), 655-680.
Kluver, R. 2014. The sage as strategy: Nodes, networks, and the quest for geopolitical power in the Confucius Institute. Communication Culture & Critique 7 (2), 192-209.
Kluver, R. 2017. Chinese culture in a global context : The Confucius Institute as a geo-cultural force. In Delisle J. and A. Goldstein (eds.), China’s Global Engagement: Cooperation, Competition, and Infl uence in the 21st Century. Washington, D. C.: Brookings Institution Press.
Paradise, J. F. 2009. China and international harmony: The role of Confucius Institutes in bolstering Beijing’s soft power. Asian Survey 49 (4), 647-669.
