How transdisciplinary research teams learn to do knowledge translation (KT), and how KT in turn impacts transdisciplinary research: a realist evaluation and longitudinal case study

Abstract

Background Transdisciplinary research and knowledge translation are increasingly regarded as key concepts underpinning applied research across the health and social sciences, due to their presumed potential in addressing complex, “wicked” problems and improving the use of research in practice and policy, respectively. Despite sharing an impact mandate, the relationship between transdisciplinary research collaboration and knowledge translation remains unclear. In response, we examined the relationship between transdisciplinary collaboration and knowledge translation to generate these understandings with a view towards maximizing the impact of collaborative efforts. Methods We undertook a realist evaluation and longitudinal case study of a 5-year National Health and Medical Research Council-funded Centre of Research Excellence in Transdisciplinary Frailty Research. Data were collected between February 2017 and March 2020 over three rounds of theory development, refinement and testing using interviews, observation, document review and visual elicitation as data sources. The Human Research Ethics Committee of the University of Adelaide approved this study. Results Iterative analysis of narrative interviews and visual data led to the development of three overarching programme theories explicating the reciprocal relationship between KT understandings and transdisciplinary team process. These programme theories revolve around the concept of a network, which we define in alignment with extant theoretical literature on network mechanisms and complex networks as graphically representable networks of agents/people (nodes) joined by social relationships (links). Our findings demonstrate that under the right contextual conditions, transdisciplinary team members respond through an improved ability to (1) navigate the network, (2) negotiate the network and (3) mobilize the network. Conclusions This research demonstrates the reciprocity and mutually supportive relationship between transdisciplinary research and knowledge translation. Our findings suggest that embedding a collaborative knowledge translation framework and providing resources such as facilitation and distributed leadership within a transdisciplinary team can improve collaboration and support transdisciplinary research objectives.

An Experiment in Transdisciplinary Systems Mapping: Architecture and the Water–Energy–Sanitation Nexus in Brazil

“…The iterative process of transdisciplinary research employs systems mapping as the underlying mechanism for the identification and evaluation of interventions, whereby transdisciplinary workshops act as the main vehicle for knowledge integration and knowledge translation [72]. Figure 2 presents a schematic overview of key elements of transdisciplinary working.…”

Virtual Special Issue on “Collaborative Practices in Mixed Methods Research”

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“…Equally relevant is the boundary spanning that takes place within and between investigative teams, communities, stakeholder groups, and bodies of knowledge. Bridging across boundaries attends to the spirit of diversity characteristic of MMR (Greene, 2007), enables collective responses to complex social problems (Lucero et al, 2018; Poth, 2018), provides opportunities to approach persistent challenges from new angles (Johnson et al, 2007), and reflects broader academic and social movements emphasizing the merits of partnership in improving research capacity, quality, and relevance to end-users (Archibald et al, 2023). Collaboration is a boundary spanning practice that is integral to these objectives.…”

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