A Comparative Analysis of Hotspots in Semiotics Theory Research in China and Abroad: A Knowledge Mapping Analysis Based on CiteSpace

Based on literature data with "semiotics theory" as the research topic from the CNKI and WOS databases, this study employs CiteSpace software to conduct a comparative analysis of the relevant research on semiotics theory in China and abroad from 2000 to 2022. The results show that: Domestic and international research on semiotics theory exhibit a multi-centered development trend, gradually forming distinctive and complementary schools of semiotics theory. China's and abroad research focuses differently, with foreign research focusing more on applying semiotics theory in social sciences, educational research, language fields, and biological sciences. In contrast, domestic research tends to focus on introducing and studying foreign semiotics theories, with linguistics being an important research area. Both domestic and international research on semiotics theory have expanded the scope of theoretical research, forming widely applicable categories of semiotics. Hotspots in foreign research include "student";"model"; "future"; "evolution"; "information"; "framework"; "discourse"; and "construction", while hotspots in domestic research include "semiotics", "Peirce", "pragmatism", "Lotman", and "symbols". The development process of domestic and international research on semiotics theory has some differences, with each stage exhibiting different research characteristics. However, both have developed from theoretical to applied research, phenomenon to essence law research, and single-mode to multi-mode research. Domestic researchers should strengthen communication and cooperation with international counterparts, build a research community for semiotics theory, deepen research connotations, and provide more case studies as paradigms; timely summarize the current status and development patterns of domestic research on semiotics theory, and gradually form a Chinese school of semiotics with international influence.