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Article

Open Access

A Bibliometric Analysis of Research on Child Metaphor

Author(s)

PAN Pan

Full-Text PDF Download XML 354 Views

DOI:10.17265/1539-8072/2023.09.001

Affiliation(s)

South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China

ABSTRACT

Utilizing CiteSpace and the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) visualization tool, the present study performed a bibliometric analysis of both Chinese and international research on child metaphor from the past three decades, examining trends and focal points. The study indicates that there is a consensus on the emergence, developmental trajectory, contributing factors of metaphoric competence, and the functions of child metaphor. However, several aspects remain underexplored, including the characteristics and developmental tendencies of metaphor production, the representation and processing mechanisms of various abstract concepts, and the rhetorical features in children’s written language. Additionally, there is a gap between the findings of international research and the verified results in the Chinese context. This study suggests that future research hotspots may include investigating the characteristics of metaphors produced by Chinese children of all ages, the creative use of language in L1 classroom discourse, and the cultivation of metaphorical ability. Chinese scholars may benefit from enhancing interdisciplinary cooperation in the study of metaphors of atypical children and exploring the common rules of human cognitive development.

KEYWORDS

child metaphor, bibliometric analysis, CiteSpace

Cite this paper

Sino-US English Teaching, September 2023, Vol. 20, No. 9, 341-353 doi:10.17265/1539-8072/2023.09.001

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