This study aims to analyze the trends and issues in social studies textbook research, identify underexplored research areas, and propose future research directions. To achieve this, 578 papers published in five major academic journals focusing on social studies education in primary and secondary schools were analyzed. The research results indicate that interest in social studies textbooks is increasing, and analysis on social phenomena and foreign textbooks is being actively conducted. Although there are considerable researches on textbook development and reconstruction, there is a lack of theoretical and empirical studies on the principles of content organization, which calls for improvement. Additionally, research on the use and changing perceptions of AIDT(AI Digital Textbook) needs to be strengthened. In comparative studies of textbooks, the lack of longitudinal analysis suggests a need for supplementation. Moreover, while research on foreign textbooks is concentrated on Japan and China, it should be expanded to include various countries such as Germany, and there is a need to strengthen research on reading materials, graphs, infographics, inquiry activities, and illustrations.