The role and structural analysis of mindfulness-related publications in exercise and sport psychology research from a bibliometric perspective

Abstract

In recent years, mindfulness has become an increasingly prominent research topic in sports science. The purpose of this study is to investigate the status of mindfulness-related research within the domains of sport, exercise, and physical activity using a bibliometric approach. Data were collected from the Web of Science database on 13 April 2025 through a systematic search using the keywords “mindfulness” AND “sport” OR “exercise” OR “physical activity”, and include publications from 2004 to 2025. A total of 422 documents were retrieved, and the data were analyzed and visualized using the Biblioshiny package in the R Studio environment. The results indicated that the Mindfulness journal published the largest number of studies on this topic. According to the analysis, the United States was the leading country in terms of publication output, while China stood out in international co-authorships. Among the authors, Ullrich-French S. had the highest number of publications, and Fournier J.F. received the most citations. Overall, findings indicate that mindfulness is a relatively new but rapidly growing area in sport and exercise psychology, with the 2024 publication surge reflecting rising scholarly interest. This research enhances the field by mapping mindfulness studies in sport and exercise psychology and offering guidance for future investigations.