The purpose of this study is to identify rural research topics, differences in research topics over time, and key mediators through the analysis of academic research trends using topic modeling. This study analyzed a total of 1,183 articles published in the Journal of Rural Planning and Rural Society over a 23-year period (2000-2022). We categorized rural research topics into 30, examined the proportion of research in each topic, and identified major changes in research topics over time. We also identified key words that mediate between research topics. The study found that, first, rural research trends can be categorized into five types (resources and utilization, area/space, people, ecosystem/environment, and tourism), with area/space being the most studied. Subtopics include rural amenities, rural disappearance/village miniaturization, and rural landscape management. Second, the research topics for each period were different. In the first period(2003-2007), the main research topics were rural amenities and Agricultural production- based climate vulnerability assessment. In the second period(2008-2012), the main research topics were Rural extinction and village depopulation, and rural landscape management, and in the third period(2013-2017), the main research topics were rural sixth industrialization and rural ecotourism. In the fourth period(2018-2022), rural development planning and rural life services(life SOC) were the main research topics. The significance of this study is that it extends the existing method of analyzing research trends and provides basic data to enhance comprehensive insights and understanding of rural research.