Using Text Network Analysis for Analyzing Academic Papers in Nursing

Purpose: This study examined the suitability of using text network analysis (TNA) methodology for topic analysis of academic papers related to nursing. Methods: TNA background theories, software programs, and research processes have been described in this paper. Additionally, the research methodology that applied TNA to the topic analysis of the academic nursing papers was analyzed. Results: As background theories for the study, we explained information theory, word co-occurrence analysis, graph theory, network theory, and social network analysis. The TNA procedure was described as follows: 1) collection of academic articles, 2) text extraction, 3) preprocessing, 4) generation of word co-occurrence matrices, 5) social network analysis, and 6) interpretation and discussion. Conclusion: TNA using author-keywords has several advantages. It can utilize recognized terms such as MeSH headings or terms chosen by professionals, and it saves time and effort. Additionally, the study emphasizes the necessity of developing a sophisticated research design that explores nursing research trends in a multidimensional method by applying TNA methodology.