Mapping cyberbullying research: A systematic analysis of thematic trends and interdisciplinary integration

Despite growing research on cyberbullying, studies in social science and computer science remain largely disconnected, limiting interdisciplinary advancements. This study systematically analyzed 2,427 cyberbullying-related publications using bibliometric analysis and structural topic modeling to identify thematic trends and disciplinary differences. Results revealed that a topic regarding cyberbullying detection was the most dominant theme (9.9%), especially prevalent in computer science, reflecting the strong emphasis of the field on AI-based monitoring systems. In contrast, topics such as victimization and depression (4.3%) and teacher roles (6.2%) were more prominent in social science, highlighting the focus on psychological impacts and educational interventions. Significant differences in topic prevalence between disciplines underscore a clear divide: technical detection methods dominate computer science, whereas human-centered approaches shape social science. We discuss opportunities to integrate these approaches to foster interdisciplinary solutions for cyberbullying prevention.