Mapping analysis of sixty-seven years of scientific evolution about the transgender population

Gender, traditionally treated in a dichotomous manner as male and female, does not encompass non-binary gender identities. One of the terms used to refer to a non-binary gender identity is transgender, which is employed in this study to investigate its strategic themes and thematic evolution. To achieve this, a bibliometric performance and network analysis (BPNA) was carried out using the existing data from the Web of Science database between 1954 and March 2021. A total of 23,471 articles were identified and included in the SciMAT software to conduct a bibliometric analysis, resulting in the visualization of the graph depicting the thematic evolution structure and the strategic diagram. This analysis highlights eight motor themes and a significant cross-cutting theme, which are discussed in depth. The results demonstrate the relationship between the transgender theme and gender, identity, sexual orientation, hormone therapy, and gender-affirming surgery. It is concluded that, despite the large number of associated research, some areas of study are still in their early stages, such as the inclusion of transgender people in the formal labor market and in the prison context. This opens up the field for further studies.