This study aims to examine the characteristics of postgraduate theses conducted on the topic of values within the field of social studies education in Türkiye. The research was designed as a document analysis study. The data source consists of 230 postgraduate theses accessed from the database of the Council of Higher Education National Thesis Center and published between 2007-2024. The data were analyzed using descriptive analysis based on the following themes: year of publication, thesis type, university, researcher gender, research topic, research method, and sample or study group. The findings indicate that the majority of the theses were master’s theses and that the highest number of publications occurred in 2019. In terms of institutional distribution, Niğde Ömer Halisdemir University, Marmara University and Kastamonu University ranked highest. The results also show that the number of female researchers exceeds that of male researchers. Regarding research focus, master’s theses predominantly addressed opinions on values and values education, whereas doctoral theses mainly focused on practices related to values education. Qualitative research designs were the most frequently employed methodological approach. Finally, social studies teachers were the most common study group in master’s theses, while middle school students were most frequently included in doctoral theses.
Social studies education, document analysis, postgraduate thesis, value education.