Mapping the Intellectual Structure of International Study Tours: A PRISMA-Based Bibliometric Analysis, 1950–2025

Abstract

As an integrated educational model that combines inquiry-based learning with travel experiences, study travel plays a significant role in fostering students’ social responsibility, innovative spirit, and practical abilities, and has attracted growing attention worldwide. Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, this study conducts a systematic review of the literature published between 1950 and 2025. It identifies six major themes corresponding to the three stages of study travel. Through bibliometric analysis, the research delineates publication trends, core journal distributions, and keyword co-occurrence networks in the field. The findings indicate that experiential learning, constructivism, and transformative learning theory constitute the dominant theoretical foundations in current scholarship. Moreover, a notable “learning–travel imbalance” is observed, whereby educational processes and learning outcomes receive substantially more scholarly attention than travel attributes, industry logic, and managerial dimensions. This paper offers a systematic mapping of the knowledge terrain and theoretical architecture in international study travel research, clarifies existing gaps, and suggests directions for future interdisciplinary integration and for deeper synthesis of “learning” and “travel” in both research and practice.