Metaverse in Education: a Bibliometric Study

The term “metaverse” first appeared in Neal Stephenson՚s 1992 science fiction novel Snow Crash in
which he defined it as a virtual environment shared over the Internet. Since the publication of that work,
technological advances have allowed the creation of several metaverses for popular use—virtual world
platforms such as Second Life, IMVU, VRchat, Sansar, Roblox, The Sims and Active Worlds, in addition to
venturing into other fields such as education, for example, in which its use is prioritized to develop
learning environments that allow students to function safely. and personalized in parallel realities.
Through a bibliometric analysis of 130 documents, this article aims to review studies on the metaverse
and its inclusion in education. The findings include a summary of the most important scientific articles
and journals in the subject area, as well as the most prolific and prominent authors, organizations and
nations. Additionally, a keyword co-occurrence analysis was made that helps reveal the main research
clusters and their subtopics. The study offers a comprehensive overview of the expected impacts of the
metaverse on education.