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

Abstract

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.

How to set up a transdisciplinary research project in Central Asia: description and evaluation

“…2. As also reported by Durham et al (2014) and Tobias et al (2018) we found it quite challenging to initialize the TDR project in terms of getting the right stakeholders on board. Initially stakeholders were difficult to reach by email of phone, emails asking for an interview were rarely considered and our local assistants were only successful in fixing a few interviews appointments in advance by phone.…”

“…In practice, it is challenging to initialize, frame and design the TDR process, selecting appropriate methods for collaboration and knowledge integration among scientists from different disciplines and practitioners (Luthe 2017). Each TDR process needs to be adapted to the given context, the needs of scientists and non-academic actors, the desired outcomes as well as to available money and time (Durham et al 2014, Tobias et al 2018. Hence, there cannot be a TDR blueprint in terms of ''one-size-fits-all'' (Zscheischler and Rogga 2015).…”

Researchers Working With City Administrations: Reflecting on Transdisciplinary Collaboration Under Conditions of Shared Goals but Different Constraints

“…The respondents in this survey were those with whom we have experience collaborating, and who we knew to be open to collaboration between city administrations and researchers, so it is not surprising that the attitudes were generally positive. Tobias et al (2019) similarly found that experience with collaboration tends to lead to more positive attitudes towards transdisciplinary principles and to a higher likelihood of collaboration in the future. However, even within this group of colleagues with a history of working together, some differences in the working worlds were identi ed and there appear to be insu cient mutual understandings of the constraints they each face.…”

Barriers and Opportunities for Actionable Knowledge Production in Drought Risk Management: Embracing the Frontiers of Co-production

“…This will require that researchers become partners in knowledge creation rather than solely producers of knowledge and to recognise multiple ways of understanding drought risk. In the right collaborative environment, explicit interaction with different knowledge systems can help to build trust, develop shared understandings and enrich knowledge outcomes (Tobias et al, 2019). Creating an enabling environment that accommodates a diverse understanding of drought is far from straightforward, requiring skills not typically required in natural science.…”