REGION AND GEOGRAPHY ISSN:2586-1468(Online) 지역과 지리

Urban shrinkage is a global phenomenon, and research documents diverse patterns across national and regional contexts. As concerns over “local extinction” have grown in South Korea, the volume of related research has increased accordingly. Because the causes and trajectories of shrinkage vary across historical and institutional settings, research agendas diverge across countries and regions. This study compares South Korean and international scholarship to identify core themes and their temporal shifts. This study conducts a keyword co-occurrence network analysis of domestic and international publications to map thematic structures at continental and national scales and to trace thematic changes over time. After the 2008 global financial crisis, international research moved beyond diagnosis toward policy-oriented work on social inequality, fiscal stress, and urban resilience. Scholars also expanded their focus beyond large metropolitan areas to small and medium-sized cities, rural regions, and suburban and peripheral areas. European studies extended core–periphery frameworks to post-socialist cities and rural contexts, while U.S. research increasingly examined vacancy issues and spatial inequality under constrained local finance. Studies of China and Japan document distinct state-led responses to shrinkage. South Korean research has largely concentrated on policy-centered work on urban regeneration and “local extinction,” leaving urban shrinkage itself comparatively underexamined. Future research should shift toward the socio-spatial consequences of shrinkage—particularly equity and spatial inequality—and integrate long-term simulations with quantitative and qualitative methods to inform policy priorities and scholarly efforts.