Community Service Initiative Using VOSviewer for Bibliometric Applications in Academic Capacity Building

Abstract

The rapid increase in scientific publications presents both opportunities and challenges for researchers, particularly in identifying emerging topics, establishing productive collaborations, and identifying research gaps. To address these challenges, a community service program was organized to introduce the use of VOSviewer, a bibliometric mapping tool, as part of academic capacity building. The program was organized by the Young Accounting Graduates Association (ICMA) on February 3, 2025, and delivered through online training sessions via Zoom. A total of 90 participants, consisting of lecturers, students, and young researchers in accounting and business, attended the program. The training consisted of three sessions: an introduction to bibliometric mapping, hands-on practice with VOSviewer, and a reflection and discussion session. The results showed a significant increase in participants' technical competency. More than 85% of participants were able to independently perform basic analyses such as co-authorship mapping, co-occurrence mapping, and citation mapping, compared to only 20% before the training. Future programs are recommended to include pre-training materials, follow-up workshops, and mentoring schemes to maximize impact. Overall, this initiative highlights the importance of integrating digital research tools into community service programs to empower academic communities and ensure their active participation in the global scientific discourse.