Facilitating Transdisciplinary Research in an Evolving Approach to Science
Affiliation(s)
USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Washington DC, USA. USDA Economic Research Service, Washington DC, USA.
USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Washington DC, USA. USDA Economic Research Service, Washington DC, USA.
ABSTRACT
Transdisciplinary research is changing the way research is conducted and supported by incorporating linkages between disciplinary fields, across geographic boundaries, and among scientists and broader societal stakeholder groups. There is a compelling opportunity and important role for social scientists to participate in both transdisciplinary projects addressing societal challenge issues and in research projects focused on the development of transdisciplinary project methodology and management. A shift in approach to scientific inquiry requires adjustments in institutional support structures as well as individual research projects and specific programs. US funding agencies, including the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) have clearly built trans-disciplinarity into their portfolio of research programs.
Transdisciplinary research is changing the way research is conducted and supported by incorporating linkages between disciplinary fields, across geographic boundaries, and among scientists and broader societal stakeholder groups. There is a compelling opportunity and important role for social scientists to participate in both transdisciplinary projects addressing societal challenge issues and in research projects focused on the development of transdisciplinary project methodology and management. A shift in approach to scientific inquiry requires adjustments in institutional support structures as well as individual research projects and specific programs. US funding agencies, including the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) have clearly built trans-disciplinarity into their portfolio of research programs.
Cite this paper
Hunt, F. and Thornsbury, S. (2014) Facilitating Transdisciplinary Research in an Evolving Approach to Science. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 2, 340-351. doi: 10.4236/jss.2014.24038.
Hunt, F. and Thornsbury, S. (2014) Facilitating Transdisciplinary Research in an Evolving Approach to Science. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 2, 340-351. doi: 10.4236/jss.2014.24038.
References
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http://srsa.org/pdf/SRSA%20Address2011.pdf [2] Batie, S. (2008) Wicked Problems and Applied Economics. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 90, 1176-1191.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0277-9536(87)90107-9 [25] Transdisciplinary Research on Energetics and Cancer (2009) Midcourse Update 39th Regular Meeting of the Board of Scientific Advisors. US HHS National Institute of Health.
http://cancercontrol.cancer.gov/brp/trec/docs/TREC_Briefing_Book_508.pdf [26] Crow, M.M. (2011) Time to Rethink the NIH. Nature, 471, 569-571.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/471569a [27] Gragson, T.L. and Grove, M. (2006) Social Science in the Context of the Long Term Ecological Research Program. Society and Natural Resources: An International Journal, 19, 93-100.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/08941920500394410 [28] Gragson, T.L., Grove, J.M. and Childers, D. (2005) Engaging the Social Sciences to LTER Network-Level Science & Synthesis.
http://intranet2.lternet.edu/documents/engaging-social-sciences-lter-network-level-science-synthesis [29] National Science Foundation (2011) Long-Term Ecological Research Program: A Report of the 30 Year Review Committee. Advisory Committee for the Biological Sciences.
http://intranet2.lternet.edu/content/report-lter-30-year-review-committee-released [30] Palmer, M.A. (2012) Socioenvironmental Sustainability and Actionable Science. Bioscience, 62, 5-6.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1525/bio.2012.62.1.2 [31] National Research Council (2003) Frontiers in Agricultural Research: Food, Health, Environment, and Communities. The National Academies Press, Washington DC. [32] University of Arkansas (2009) Rice CAP Cumulative Project Report.
http://www.ricecap.uark.edu/Management/Annual_Reports/Board%20mtg_SanDiegoCA_milusJan09.pdf [33] USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (2011) Specialty Crop Research Initiative FY2012 Request for Applications.
http://www.nifa.usda.gov/funding/rfas/specialty_crop.html [34] National Research Council (2009) A New Biology for the 21st Century. The National Academies Press, Washington DC. [35] USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (2009) Climate Change Strategic Directions for NIFA. Washington DC. [36] Office of Management and Budgets (2011) Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies.
www.whitehouse.gov/.../files/omb/assets/memoranda_2010/m10-30.pdf [37] National Research Council (2010) Toward Sustainable Agricultural Systems in the 21st Century. The National Academies Press, Washington DC. [38] Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (2008) Economics in CSREES: A Report to the Administrator. Washington DC. [39] USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (2010) Social Science Research Planning: Climate Change, Bio-Energy, and Natural Resources Workshop.
http://www.nifa.usda.gov/nea/nre/in_focus/ere_if_social_science.html [40] Regional Approaches to Climate Change—Pacific Northwest Agriculture (2013) Project Director’s Update.
https://www.reacchpna.org/project-director-updates/directors-update-may-2013/. [41] Climate Change, Mitigation, and Adaptation in Corn-Based Cropping Systems [Sustainable Corn]. Top 10 Year 3 Accomplishments.
http://www.sustainablecorn.org/ [42] Useful to Usable. Transforming Climate Variability and Change Information for Cereal Crop Producers Accomplishment Highlights, April 2011-February 2013.
https://drinet.hubzero.org/resources/581/download/U2UExecSummary2013_2_7.pdf
[1] Jackson, R. (2011) Knowns, Unknowns, and Impacts, Presidential Address. Southern Regional Science Association, New Orleans.
http://srsa.org/pdf/SRSA%20Address2011.pdf [2] Batie, S. (2008) Wicked Problems and Applied Economics. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 90, 1176-1191.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8276.2008.01202.x [3] Lazarus, R. (2009) Super Wicked Problems and Climate Change: Restraining the Present to Liberate the Future. Cornell Law Review, 94, 1153-1234. [4] Robertson, G.P., et al. (2008) Long-Term Agricultural Research: A Research, Education, and Extension Imperative. BioScience, 58, 640.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1641/B580711 [5] Cushing, B. (2011) Advancement of Knowledge: A Journey Through Space and Time. The Review of Regional Studies, 41, 73-80. [6] Schaefer, P.V., Jackson, R.W. and Bukenya, J.O. (2011) Regional Science Reconsidered. The Review of Regional Studies, 41, 161-177. [7] Pohl, C. (2010) From Transdiciplinarity to Transdisciplinary Research. Transdisciplinary Journal of Engineering and Science, 1, 74-83. [8] Wiesmann, U., Hadorn, G., Hoffmann-Riem, H., Biber-Klemm, S., Grossenbacher, W., Joye, D., Pohl, C. and Zemp, E. (2008) Enhancing Transdisciplinary Research: A Synthesis in Fifteen Propositions. In: Hadorn, G., Hoffmann-Riem, H., Biber-Klemm, S., Grossenbacher-Mansuy, W., Joye, D., Pohl, C., Wiesmann, U., and Zemp E., Eds., Handbook of Transdisciplinary Research, Springer, Dordrecht.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-6699-3_29 [9] Rosenfield, P.L. (1992) The Potential of Transdisciplinary Research for Sustaining and Extending Linkages between the Health and Social Sciences. Social Science & Medicine, 35, 1343-1357.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0277-9536(92)90038-R [10] National Academy of Sciences (2004) Facilitating Interdisciplinary Research. The National Academies Press, Washington DC. [11] Tress. G., Tress, B. and Fry, G. (2004) Clarifying Integrative Research Concepts in Landscape Ecology. Landscape Ecology, 20, 479-493.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10980-004-3290-4 [12] Gray, B. (2008) Enhancing Transdisciplinary Research through Collaborative Leadership. American Journal of Preventative Medicine, 35, S124-S132.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2008.03.037 [13] Wake, M.H. (2008) Integrative Biology: Science for the 21st Century. BioScience, 58, 349-353.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1641/B580410 [14] Van Kerkhoff, L. (2005) Strategic Integration: The Practical Politics of Integrated Research in Context. Journal of Research Practice, 1. [15] Cornwall, A. and Jewkes, R. (1995) What Is Participatory Research? Social Science and Medicine, 41, 1667-1676.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0277-9536(95)00127-S [16] Levinson, B. and Thornton, K.W. (2003) Managing Interdisciplinary Research: Lessons Learned from the EPA/NSF/ USDA Water and Watersheds Research Program. The First Interagency Conference on Research in the Watersheds, Benson.
http://www.tucson.ars.ag.gov/ICRW/Proceedings/Levinson.pdf [17] Youtie, J. and Corley, E. (2011) Federally Sponsored Multidisciplinary Research Centers: Learning, Evaluation, and Vicious Circles. Evaluation and Program Planning, 34, 13-20.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2010.05.002 [18] Eigenbrode, S., et al. (2007) Employing Philosophical Dialogue in Collaborative Science. BioScience, 57, 55.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1641/B570109 [19] Pohl. C. (2005) Transdisciplinary Collaboration in Environmental Research. Futures, 37, 1159-1178.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.futures.2005.02.009 [20] Dovers, S. (2005) Clarifying the Imperative of Integration Research for Sustainable Environmental Management. Journal of Research Practice, 1.
http://jrp.icaap.org/index.php/jrp/article/view/11/30 [21] Walter, A., Halgenberger, S., Wiek, A. and Scholz, R. (2007) Measuring Societal Effects of Transdisciplinary Research Projects: Design and Application of an Evaluation Method. Evaluation of Program Planning, 30, 325-338.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2007.08.002 [22] Klein, J.T. (2008) Evaluation of Interdisciplinary and Transdisciplinary Research—A Literature Review. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 35, S116-S123.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2008.05.010 [23] Vajjhala, S., Krupnick, A., McCormick, E., Grove, M., McDowell, P., Redman, C., Shabman, L. and Small, M. (2007) Rising to the Challenge: Integrating Social Science into NSF Environmental Observatories. Resource for the Future Report.
http://www.rff.org/rff/news/features/upload/30183_1.pdf [24] Foster, G.M. (1987) World Health Organization Behavioral Science Research: Problems and Prospects. Social Science & Medicine, 24, 709-717.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0277-9536(87)90107-9 [25] Transdisciplinary Research on Energetics and Cancer (2009) Midcourse Update 39th Regular Meeting of the Board of Scientific Advisors. US HHS National Institute of Health.
http://cancercontrol.cancer.gov/brp/trec/docs/TREC_Briefing_Book_508.pdf [26] Crow, M.M. (2011) Time to Rethink the NIH. Nature, 471, 569-571.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/471569a [27] Gragson, T.L. and Grove, M. (2006) Social Science in the Context of the Long Term Ecological Research Program. Society and Natural Resources: An International Journal, 19, 93-100.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/08941920500394410 [28] Gragson, T.L., Grove, J.M. and Childers, D. (2005) Engaging the Social Sciences to LTER Network-Level Science & Synthesis.
http://intranet2.lternet.edu/documents/engaging-social-sciences-lter-network-level-science-synthesis [29] National Science Foundation (2011) Long-Term Ecological Research Program: A Report of the 30 Year Review Committee. Advisory Committee for the Biological Sciences.
http://intranet2.lternet.edu/content/report-lter-30-year-review-committee-released [30] Palmer, M.A. (2012) Socioenvironmental Sustainability and Actionable Science. Bioscience, 62, 5-6.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1525/bio.2012.62.1.2 [31] National Research Council (2003) Frontiers in Agricultural Research: Food, Health, Environment, and Communities. The National Academies Press, Washington DC. [32] University of Arkansas (2009) Rice CAP Cumulative Project Report.
http://www.ricecap.uark.edu/Management/Annual_Reports/Board%20mtg_SanDiegoCA_milusJan09.pdf [33] USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (2011) Specialty Crop Research Initiative FY2012 Request for Applications.
http://www.nifa.usda.gov/funding/rfas/specialty_crop.html [34] National Research Council (2009) A New Biology for the 21st Century. The National Academies Press, Washington DC. [35] USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (2009) Climate Change Strategic Directions for NIFA. Washington DC. [36] Office of Management and Budgets (2011) Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies.
www.whitehouse.gov/.../files/omb/assets/memoranda_2010/m10-30.pdf [37] National Research Council (2010) Toward Sustainable Agricultural Systems in the 21st Century. The National Academies Press, Washington DC. [38] Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (2008) Economics in CSREES: A Report to the Administrator. Washington DC. [39] USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (2010) Social Science Research Planning: Climate Change, Bio-Energy, and Natural Resources Workshop.
http://www.nifa.usda.gov/nea/nre/in_focus/ere_if_social_science.html [40] Regional Approaches to Climate Change—Pacific Northwest Agriculture (2013) Project Director’s Update.
https://www.reacchpna.org/project-director-updates/directors-update-may-2013/. [41] Climate Change, Mitigation, and Adaptation in Corn-Based Cropping Systems [Sustainable Corn]. Top 10 Year 3 Accomplishments.
http://www.sustainablecorn.org/ [42] Useful to Usable. Transforming Climate Variability and Change Information for Cereal Crop Producers Accomplishment Highlights, April 2011-February 2013.
https://drinet.hubzero.org/resources/581/download/U2UExecSummary2013_2_7.pdf