The Past, the Present, and the Future: A Bibliometric Analysis of Failed/Fragile/Collapsed State Research During 1990–2020

The “failed/fragile/collapsed state” refers to state authority's complete or partial collapse, such as Somalia and Bosnia. According to Fragile States Index 2020 annual report, approximately 116 countries among 178 countries were in warning or alerting state quo, which hurts three-quarters of the world's population. A systematic scientometric interpretation of failed/fragile/collapsed state analysis would be helpful but is presently absent in the academic community. This review makes three donations by evaluating the 2,417 articles published in the Web of Science (WoS) Social Science Citation Index (SSCI) Collection between 1990 and 2020. First, it provides a unique prospect in failed/fragile/collapsed state studies through a detailed, systematic, and objective analysis. Second, the author has quantitatively tracked the progression of failed/fragile/collapsed state studies from 1990 to 2020. Finally, the author associated evolutionary trajectory analysis with future research directions, offering new pathways for failed/fragile/collapsed state studies. It also helps novice “failed/fragile/collapsed state” researchers and veteran scholars identify future research trends.