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Analyzing Research Trends in Blockchain Studies in South Korea Using Dynamic Topic Modeling and Network Analysis

다이나믹 토픽모델링 및 네트워크 분석 기법을 통한 블록체인 관련 국내 연구 동향 분석

  • 김동훈 (성균관대학교 문헌정보학과) ;
  • 오찬희 (성균관대학교 문헌정보학과) ;
  • 주영준 (성균관대학교 문헌정보학과)
  • Received : 2021.08.16
  • Accepted : 2021.09.24
  • Published : 2021.09.30

Abstract

This study aims to explore research trends in Blockchain studies in South Korea using dynamic topic modeling and network analysis. To achieve this goal, we conducted the university & institute collaboration network analysis, the keyword co-occurrence network analysis, and times series topic analysis using dynamic topic modeling. Through the university & institute collaboration network analysis, we found major universities such as Soongsil University, Soonchunhyang University, Korea University, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and major institutes such as Ministry of National Defense, Korea Railroad Research Institute, Samil PricewaterhouseCoopers, Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute that led collaborative research. Next, through the analysis of the keyword co-occurrence network, we found major research keywords including virtual assets (Cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, Ethereum, Virtual currency), blockchain technology (Distributed ledger, Distributed ledger technology), finance (Smart contract), and information security (Security, privacy, Personal information). Smart contracts showed the highest scores in all network centrality measures showing its importance in the field. Finally, through the time series topic analysis, we identified five major topics including blockchain technology, blockchain ecosystem, blockchain application 1 (trade, online voting, real estate), blockchain application 2 (food, tourism, distribution, media), and blockchain application 3 (economy, finance). Changes of topics were also investigated by exploring proportions of representative keywords for each topic. The study is the first of its kind to attempt to conduct university & institute collaboration networks analysis and dynamic topic modeling-based times series topic analysis for exploring research trends in Blockchain studies in South Korea. Our results can be used by government agencies, universities, and research institutes to develop effective strategies of promoting university & institutes collaboration and interdisciplinary research in the field.

본 연구에서는 국내 블록체인 연구의 전반적인 동향 및 시간에 따른 주제를 파악하기 위해 대학 및 기관 협력 네트워크 분석, 키워드 동시출현 네트워크 분석, 다이나믹 토픽모델링 기법을 활용한 시계열 주제 분석을 실시하였다. 대학 및 기관 협력 네트워크 분석 결과, 숭실대학교, 순천향대학교, 고려대학교, 한국과학기술원 등이 블록체인 연구의 주요 대학으로 나타났으며 대학 이외의 기관으로는 국방부, 한국철도기술연구원, 삼일회계법인, 한국전자통신연구원 등이 주요 연구기관으로 나타났다. 키워드 동시출현 네트워크 분석 결과, 가상자산(암호화폐, 비트코인, 이더리움, 가상화폐), 블록체인 기술(분산원장, 분산원장기술), 금융(스마트계약), 정보보안(보안, 프라이버시, 개인정보) 등에 대한 키워드들이 주요하게 나타났으며, 모든 네트워크 중심성 지표에서 스마트계약이 가장 높은 수치를 나타내어 주요한 주제임을 확인할 수 있었다. 마지막으로 시계열 주제분석 결과, 블록체인기술, 블록체인생태계, 블록체인 적용분야1(무역, 온라인투표, 부동산), 블록체인 적용분야2(식품, 관광, 유통, 미디어), 블록체인 적용분야3(경제, 금융) 등 다섯 개의 주요 주제들을 도출하였으며, 각 주제별 대표 키워드들의 비율변화를 통해 주제별 변화를 관찰할 수 있었다. 본 연구는 기존의 국내 블록체인 연구동향 연구들과 크게 세 가지 관점(데이터, 방법론, 해석)에서 차이점을 나타내고 있다. 1) 최근 2년 사이 급증한 블록체인 연구를 포함하였고, 2) 대학 및 기관 네트워크 분석과 시계열 주제분석이라는 새로운 분석기법 및 연구방법을 활용하였으며, 3) 이를 통해 블록체인 연구를 주도하는 대학 및 기관을 식별하고 국내 블록체인 연구 트렌드를 파악하였다. 끝으로, 연구결과가 블록체인 관련 연구 협력 및 정책 수립과 관련 기술 개발 계획에 활용될 수 있다는 점에서 실질적인 함의를 시사한다.

Keywords

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