Traversing the Evolution of Research on Engineering Education for Sustainability: A Bibliometric Review (1991–2022)

David Kongpiwatana Narong, Philip Hallinger

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

5 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Engineering education plays a pivotal role in cultivating the engineering capacity for sustainable development. Nonetheless, there has been no comprehensive review that examines sustainability as a distinct knowledge domain within engineering education. This review filled this gap by conducting a bibliometric review to document the research landscape, analyze the intellectual structure of the literature, and identify emerging research themes. The review sourced 2738 Scopus-indexed documents published between 1991 and 2022. Data analyses included descriptive statistics, co-citation analysis, and keyword co-occurrence analysis. The study identified consistent growth in research output and geographic diversity. Four predominant conceptual themes were identified in the literature: (1) Engineering Education Reform, (2) Engineering Competencies, Pedagogy, and Curriculum, (3) Curriculum Assessment and Benchmarks, and (4) Sustainable Technologies. Findings emphasize the need for defining precise engineering competencies related to sustainability, incorporating diverse teaching methods, and ensuring that sustainability learning outcomes align with changing industry norms, regulations, and accreditation criteria. The study also highlights a growing focus on the use of Industry 4.0 technologies as a means of achieving sustainability outcomes. The review underscores the need for sustained curriculum reform to successfully transform engineering education toward sustainability.

Original languageEnglish
Article number641
JournalSustainability
Volume16
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jan 2024

Keywords

  • bibliometric review
  • education for sustainable development
  • engineering education
  • higher education
  • science mapping
  • sustainability
  • sustainable development
  • systematic review

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Computer Science (miscellaneous)
  • Geography, Planning and Development
  • Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
  • Environmental Science (miscellaneous)
  • Energy Engineering and Power Technology
  • Hardware and Architecture
  • Computer Networks and Communications
  • Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law

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