From Acoustics to Cognition: Unveiling the Intellectual Structure and Interdisciplinary Evolution of Vocal Arts Scholarship

From Acoustics to Cognition: Unveiling the Intellectual Structure and Interdisciplinary Evolution of Vocal Arts Scholarship | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Systematic Review From Acoustics to Cognition: Unveiling the Intellectual Structure and Interdisciplinary Evolution of Vocal Arts Scholarship Huijuan Zheng, Tong Zhao, Wenjing Xue This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8966547/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 6 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Although vocal art is historically rooted in aesthetic performance, its academic identity has become increasingly complex, straddling the boundaries between artistic expression, medical science, and cognitive psychology. This expansive growth has led to a fragmented knowledge base, where the "explicit patterns" of global collaboration and the "implicit logic" of thematic evolution remain obscured by disciplinary silos. To decode the structural dynamics of this evolving domain, this study synthesizes bibliometric data from the Web of Science Core Collection (1990–2024). Unlike previous reviews, this analysis employs a multidimensional visualization approach to reconstruct the intellectual topography of the field, moving beyond simple metrics to reveal how vocal research is being redefined globally. Results indicate that the field has undergone a profound paradigm shift. What began as a niche area focused on foundational acoustics and behavioral mechanics (in the 1990s) has matured into a robust interdisciplinary science. The trajectory reveals a distinct evolution: the research focus first expanded to pedagogical psychology and professional competence (2000s–2010s) and has recently pivoted towards technological intervention, neuroscientific validation, and vocal health plasticity (post-2015). This evolution is driven by a deep convergence of Musicology, Otorhinolaryngology, and Audiology, creating a "knowledge bridge" that connects theoretical artistry with clinical practice. Geographically, the United States anchors the central collaboration network, yet a dichotomy exists between "volume" and "impact": while Asian contributions (particularly from China) are surging in quantity, European clusters (e.g., UK, Germany, Finland) demonstrate superior citation influence, driving high-quality theoretical innovation. By identifying four core strategic themes—ranging from physiological performance to cognitive-behavioral effects—this study provides a data-driven framework for the future. It argues that the next phase of vocal arts research must transcend technical measurement to embrace a holistic, evidence-based integration of culture, medicine, and technology. Biological sciences/Neuroscience Biological sciences/Psychology Social science/Psychology Vocal art Music Bibliometrics Citespace Research hotspots Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files Appendix.txt Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviewers agreed at journal 16 May, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 09 Apr, 2026 Editor invited by journal 11 Mar, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 02 Mar, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 27 Feb, 2026 First submitted to journal 25 Feb, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8966547","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Systematic Review","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":622567350,"identity":"a85e7f9d-a2d7-4939-a23e-1713c94dadc3","order_by":0,"name":"Huijuan Zheng","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Guangdong University of Foreign Studies","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Huijuan","middleName":"","lastName":"Zheng","suffix":""},{"id":622567351,"identity":"3bcb02bc-6aba-41df-ad0c-4689fee67e36","order_by":1,"name":"Tong Zhao","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Chengdu University of Technology","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Tong","middleName":"","lastName":"Zhao","suffix":""},{"id":622567352,"identity":"4aac4706-d93f-4018-ba57-f55770a09af7","order_by":2,"name":"Wenjing Xue","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA5UlEQVRIie3PMWsCMRTA8ReE3hJwPQe/wyuOSg+/yQUht0hx7ODwRHASut7HyCZukQedzt4qdHHSNWOHIvUE1xg3wfyHRwL58QhALPaAtdsz4l8cXO+t26RT8oZhopuzoCCCVo8YHN9BwFbIE6zVKtke9/DRV5RsrVeI+RK5xB+1XhavBFWhSL7nXtKCCq08E2O1ILFgRalEL3mBcUO+lakPZ3IKIBJ0zhKtMrtmCwWQNGW7KXHUM7uDKPOvoreQYz/J6tncub+3rqk1ODftdz+Tyk+uDamZ+eV3gWWhD2OxWOwJ+weGnk+cujTgYQAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==","orcid":"","institution":"Yunnan Arts University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Wenjing","middleName":"","lastName":"Xue","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2026-02-25 10:25:36","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8966547/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8966547/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":107190084,"identity":"b8078d96-4749-4f8e-b8d2-646a378c5da9","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-04-17 20:39:41","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1340213,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"26.2.24vocalmuiscManuscripts.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8966547/v1_covered_a98ed6f0-6e17-4163-953c-2d47c80c11ae.pdf"},{"id":107190047,"identity":"c7e94466-cfb4-4703-a402-7239d27a0b28","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-04-17 20:39:19","extension":"txt","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":1326511,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Appendix.txt","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8966547/v1/e5e9459566e7a0cb3264c69c.txt"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"From Acoustics to Cognition: Unveiling the Intellectual Structure and Interdisciplinary Evolution of Vocal Arts Scholarship","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"humanities-and-social-sciences-communications","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"palcomms","sideBox":"Learn more about [Humanities \u0026 Social Sciences Communications](http://www.nature.com/palcomms/)","snPcode":"41599","submissionUrl":"https://submission.springernature.com/new-submission/41599/3","title":"Humanities and Social Sciences Communications","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Nature AJ","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"Vocal art, Music, Bibliometrics, Citespace, Research hotspots","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8966547/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8966547/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eAlthough vocal art is historically rooted in aesthetic performance, its academic identity has become increasingly complex, straddling the boundaries between artistic expression, medical science, and cognitive psychology. 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