Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) Development in China: A Bibliometric Analysis

Objective: This review aims to describe the development of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) in China, summarize standard psychometrics in Chinese for this field, characterize participants and primary intervention targets in ACT randomized controlled trials (RCTs), and provide a reference for understanding and advancing ACT research in China. Methods: Literature published up to December 31, 2023, was retrieved from databases including Web of Science, PsycINFO, PubMed, CNKI, VIP and Wan Fang Data, as well as from the Contextual Behavioral Science Association website and the Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences website. Literature management was done using EndNote 21, and data statistics and visualization were performed using Excel and Python. Results: A total of 711 articles were included, distributed across 295 journals. The top ten authors of Chinese literature exhibited significant differences in the number of publications, with the top author publishing 41 articles, accounting for 25.76% of the total Chinese publications. The top ten authors in English literature had similar publication volumes, with their total publications accounting for 70.00% of the total English publications. Intervention research accounted for the highest proportion (47.12%); The collaboration rate of literature was 3.65, with a co-authorship rate of 84.25%. The highest impact factor for the journals included in the study was 11 (JAMA Network Open). Conclusion: This review presents the first systematic summary of Chinese articles related to ACT. Publications on ACT in China have shown an overall increasing trend, with a wide distribution across journals. Summarizing the application areas of ACT (physical and mental health and quality of life) helps to promote the application, research, and development of ACT in China.