Experiences with Transdisciplinary Research

Zscheischler, Jana; Rogga, Sebastian; Weith, Thomas

doi:10.1002/sres.2274

Cited by 29 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Although they had the opportunity to interact with different thought-styles, they were, at this early stage of the research programme, not able to come to terms with the impressions from the other thought-styles. This is again a typical challenge in TD research, as Wiek (2007), Zeischler et al (2014) and Di Iacovo et al (2016) have observed in other TD projects as well. At the beginning of most TD projects, the project leaders and participants put too little emphasis on the very different obligations of scientists and practitioners.…”

Section: Intermediate Effects and Challenges Of The Td Processmentioning

confidence: 94%

How transdisciplinary projects influence participants’ ways of thinking: a case study on future landscape development

2018

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Transdisciplinary (TD) approaches have increasingly been promoted in the field of land-use research. However, the theoretical discourse about transdisciplinarity is far more advanced than its implementation in practice. In particular, empirical studies about the effects of concrete TD projects on the participants are rare. We evaluated joint knowledge generation among researchers and non-academics in a TD research programme on urban and landscape development. For the assessment we used standardised questionnaires, our own observations, and a simplified implementation of the 'most significant change' method. The evaluation revealed that the participants gained considerable TD knowledge through encountering different thought-styles and problem owners. They together developed a feeling of companionship, broadened their views on the issue and, consequently, attributed increased legitimacy to it. The following aspects of TD research were found to be successful as the programme: offered opportunities for enthusiasm; used a form of communication that promotes mutual trust; and provided boundary objects. Similar to other studies, we observed the creation of hybrid spaces and communities of research and practice where the participants could build up mutual trust, interact with other thought-styles, and jointly develop their TD knowledge.

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Section: Intermediate Effects and Challenges Of The Td Processmentioning

confidence: 94%

How transdisciplinary projects influence participants’ ways of thinking: a case study on future landscape development

2018

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“…Thus, the concept of success might help reveal differences not only in individual perceptions but also in interests, beliefs, motivations, and conflicting targets. Because balancing and integrating multiple competing stakeholder goals and inherent conflicts appear to be specific challenges of TDR practice (e.g., Zscheischler et al 2014 ), focusing the concept of ‘success’ could be a promising approach for revealing contradictions and inherent conflicts within TDR projects.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The success of transdisciplinary research for sustainable land use: individual perceptions and assessments

2018

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Evaluation is a major issue in discussions of transdisciplinary research (TDR). Empirical studies often consider expert perspectives; however, knowledge of the experiences, attitudes, and motivations of a broader science-practice community applying transdisciplinarity remains rare. The present study aims to gather insights into the perceptions and assessments of success of TDR projects from scientists and practitioners with experience with TDR processes. Based on a mixed-method approach combining qualitative expert interviews with a quantitative survey reaching 178 respondents from practice and science, the results show a high commitment to the targets of TDR projects and a basic shared ‘success profile’. Nevertheless, there is currently a strong ‘practice tendency’, while TDR-specific benefits of the scientific knowledge gain remain neglected. The general success assessment of TDR projects can be described as rather moderate, indicating several deficits in the application and management of TDR.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1007/s11625-018-0556-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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“…Society is facing major global challenges like the damage or loss of resources or climate change (Ostrom 2009 ), which might threaten the livelihood of this very society. Scholars have found that to deal with these complex challenges, inputs from different academic disciplines alone are not sufficient (Kates et al 2001 ; Zscheischler et al 2014 ). Moreover, they argue that beyond interdisciplinary research, trying to solve these problems by integrating knowledge across different disciplines, approaches have to be developed that support the integration of knowledge from actors who are outside of the research process itself.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Scientists, on the other hand, look for new insights regarding methodology, theory development, or empirical evidence (Lang et al 2012 ; Bergmann et al 2005 ; Scholz 2000 ; Carew and Wickson 2010 ; Scholz et al 2006 ). To what extent these three phases have been implemented and have led to the desired effects in science and practice is highly debated (Zscheischler et al 2014 ; Carew and Wickson 2010 ; Wolf et al 2013 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The reality of transdisciplinarity: a framework-based self-reflection from science and practice leaders

2015

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This paper provided results of a frameworkbased self-reflection process conducted by the science and the practice leaders of two transdisciplinary projects realized in co-leadership from 2011 until 2014. It analyzes from the perspectives of the science and practice leaders for the whole research process including preparation, research, and follow-up phase, the (1) transdisciplinarity component of each module (in %); (2) outputs generated (tangible and intangible); (3) relevance of output for science and practice (qualitative ranking); (4) impacts emerging from the outputs (tangible and intangible); and (5) outcomes emerging from the impacts (tangible and intangible). Furthermore, the research process was reflected by practice and science project leaders and critical aspects identified. We found that first, a transdisciplinary research process might contribute to regional demands if it is carried out ''timely.'' Timeliness includes (1) the need from the perspective of the practice partners and the scientific community, (2) the willingness of the co-leaders to develop the project together, and (3) the fundamental organizational support. This was the case in our project where the results directly impacted the further development of the project. Second, a truly lived co-leadership consisting of clearly defined and lived roles and responsibilities, common definition and alignment of the goals, and acceptance of the differences in needs by practice and science leads to a trustful cooperation. Third, a good communication structure within the teams and between the practice and science teams allows to anticipating and overcoming problems at the practice-science interface leading to mutual learning and experience building.

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Experiences with Transdisciplinary Research

Cited by 29 publications

References 9 publications

How transdisciplinary projects influence participants’ ways of thinking: a case study on future landscape development

How transdisciplinary projects influence participants’ ways of thinking: a case study on future landscape development

The success of transdisciplinary research for sustainable land use: individual perceptions and assessments

The reality of transdisciplinarity: a framework-based self-reflection from science and practice leaders

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