Mapping Ludic Architecture
A Bibliometric Analysis of an Emerging Research Field
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7577/formakademisk.6479Keywords:
ludic architecture, bibliometric analysis, spatial agency, post-humanist ontology, participatory designAbstract
This study maps the academic literature produced between 2000 and 2025 in the field of ludic architecture through bibliometric methods, revealing the transformation of play from a marginal tool into an ontological actor within architectural discourse. A total of 268 publications retrieved from the Web of Science database were analyzed using VOSviewer, through which temporal trends, geographical distributions, disciplinary relations, co-authorship networks, and conceptual clusters were identified. The findings demonstrate that ludic architecture has evolved into an increasingly institutionalized, multilayered, and interdisciplinary research domain shaped by digital technologies, participatory practices, and post-anthropocentric ontologies. By clarifying how ludic agency has become an epistemic framework in architectural knowledge production, pedagogical approaches, and spatial practices, the study offers the first comprehensive bibliometric mapping of the field.
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