EDUCATIONAL INSPECTION IN SPANISH DOCTORAL THESES (1988-2024): A DESCRIPTIVE BIBLIOMETRIC STUDY

Abstract

Doctoral theses are an important indicator of research activity within universities and provide valuable insights into the evolution, key contributors, and thematic trends of a given field of knowledge. The aim of this study is to analyse the production of Spanish doctoral theses whose primary focus is educational inspection. A search was conducted in the TESEO database, initially retrieving 48 records. After examining the full texts, a final corpus of 19 theses directly related to the topic was identified. A descriptive bibliometric analysis was carried out, considering temporal trends, degree-awarding universities, type of university (publico or private), the sex of authors, supervisors, and examination committee members, as well as the thematic classification of the theses. The results reveal a limited and discontinuous research output between 1988 and 2024, concentrated mainly in public universities and characterised by a predominance of male authors and supervisors. The most common research topics concern the history and institutional development of educational inspection, together with its functions, professional practice, and models of action. The findings suggest that doctoral research on educational inspection remains limited, although an increasing diversification can be observed in recent years, particularly in relation to professionalisation, professional competences, gender, supervision, and digitalisation.