The Social, The Emotional, and The Digital: Tracing the Epistemological Shifts in English Language Education Research

Abstract

In the field of English language education, there have been salient changes as a result of cognitive-computational approaches and transdisciplinary systems. This study focuses on a comprehensive analysis of 6,815 articles published in the Web of Science database in top-tier 14 journals with highest SJR scores through bibliometric analysis. The findings suggest an increasing emphasis on social dimensions of language education, with research attention gradually expanding from teaching methods toward identity-related topics as well as concepts such as intercultural interaction, and social justice. After the pandemic, research attention increasingly turned to AI and well-being. The corpus also indicates increasing methodological diversity, particularly through the growing use of Mixed Methods Research. Asian research centers have gained momentum in the latest studies.