Mapping faculty development needs in medical education: a bibliometric analysis

Faculty development is central to sustaining and improving the quality of medical education; however, the cumulative scholarly landscape-its growth trajectories, geographic concentration, thematic architecture, and methodological foundations-has not been systematically mapped. This bibliometric analysis aims to characterize the intellectual structure of faculty development needs assessment research in medical education over a 20-year period (2005-2025) and to identify priority development needs consistently reported by faculty across diverse institutional contexts.

Bibliometric analysis was conducted using Biblioshiny (Bibliometrix v5.1.0, R v4.4.1) on a deduplicated dataset from Web of Science, Scopus, and PubMed. Analyses included publication trends, geographic distribution, citation patterns, keyword co-occurrence networks, thematic mapping, and international collaboration networks. Findings were complemented by a narrative synthesis of empirical studies to triangulate faculty development priorities across contexts.

Annual publication output increased eightfold, from 3 publications in 2005 to 24 in 2025, with a pronounced acceleration after 2018. Research output was concentrated in high-income countries, with the United States accounting for 717 citations compared to 69 (Australia) and 67 (Canada). Needs assessment was the most prevalent research theme (9% of all keywords), followed by staff development (6%) and curriculum (5%). Across diverse geographic and institutional settings, consistently reported faculty development priorities included teaching skills for large and small groups, assessment and feedback competencies, curriculum development, clinical supervision, and educational scholarship. The field relies predominantly on cross-sectional surveys and self-reported gap analyses; evaluation outcomes are largely restricted to Kirkpatrick Level 1 measures, with few studies examining behavioral change or institutional impact.

Faculty development needs assessment research has grown substantially but remains geographically concentrated and methodologically limited. The consistency of priority needs across contexts highlights universal challenges in medical education, while subgroup variation underscores the importance of targeted, contextually responsive programming. Future research should adopt longitudinal evaluation designs, expand capacity in under-represented regions, and move beyond self-report to measure authentic educational impact.