Mapping research on gender representation in English-language textbooks: A systematic review of thematic distribution and overlap

Gender representation in English-language textbooks raises concerns about educational inclusion and equity, yet existing scholarship offers limited clarity on how different dimensions of representation are examined and integrated across studies. This study characterizes the literature, maps five research themes, and examines their distribution and co-occurrence across publications. Guided by PRISMA, this systematic review screened 358 identified records and included 45 studies published between 2007 and 2024. Study characteristics were summarized descriptively, and five themes were coded non-exclusively to assess their thematic overlap. Games and leisure activities attracted the most research attention (21 studies; 46.7%), followed by visual representation (20; 44.4%), language and terminology (16; 35.6%), occupational roles (13; 28.9%), and cultural and regional contexts (8; 17.8%). Twenty-four studies addressed one theme, and 21 addressed multiple themes, including two covering all five. Visual representation overlapped with leisure activities in 12 studies, while language overlapped with occupational roles in eight. The mapping distinguishes four content dimensions from one contextual dimension, providing an interpretive structure informed by Gender Schema Theory. Theme frequencies and overlaps describe research coverage, not the prevalence, direction, or severity of gender bias. Education authorities should pilot gender-responsive textbook review policies that assess language, images, occupations, and activities using transparent, context-sensitive criteria, with documented findings guiding possible revisions before procurement and classroom adoption.