What We Can Do and Cannot Do with Topic Modeling: A Systematic Review

Topic modeling has become an effective tool for communication scholars to explore large amounts of texts. However, empirical studies applying topic modeling often face the critical question of making meaningful theoretical contributions. In this study, we highlighted the importance of theoretical underpinning, the research design, and the methodological details of topic modeling studies. We summarized five normative arguments that address critical issues in theory building and testing, research design, and reliability and validity assessments. Using these normative arguments as criteria, we systematically reviewed 105 communication studies that applied topic modeling. We identified gaps and missed opportunities in previous studies and discussed potential pitfalls for the field.