The Morphology and Differentiation of the Content of International Debate on Renewable Energy. A Bibliometric Analysis of Web of Science, Scopus, and Twitter

Abstract

This paper aims to identify a bibliometric profile, presenting the results of research and debates in social media on renewable energy sources (RES). It analyses current scientific publications (2019–2021) and tweets posted in July 2021 by international Twitter users. The subject of the study is an analysis of key words in articles, the results of research, and the content of tweets (hashtags #renewables) related to renewable energy (RE) as well as an assessment of the morphology of content and the degree of its differentiation in the analysed data resources. The conducted analysis facilitates an assessment of similarities of key words in scientific papers and the content of debates in social media—on Twitter, a global platform. In its methodological dimension, the work is based on a bibliometric analysis (articles in both bases) and the analysis of Twitter data. This methodological approach allows for identifying the main trend, profile, and bibliometric characteristics of scientific papers representing two streams of information: articles in bases and the content (hashtags) of authentic and unguided international debates on Twitter. The focus on this platform results from a great popularity of social media as a platform for social debate, expressing comments and opinions and providing an opportunity to gain understanding of social, cultural, and environmental issues related to renewable energy sources from the perspective of social media participants. The objective of the paper and the proposed methodological approach relates to a knowledge gap in the area of renewable energy, and, more specifically, climate change and sustainable development.

Keywords

• bibliometric analysis
• renewable energy
• content analysis
• Twitter