Collaborative research
Where to begin
Graduate school offers the opportunity to learn the basics of research methodology and work on individual research projects. New faculty members continue to hone their research skills once they are in a faculty position. Many opportunities to work with others arise and there are a number of advantages as well as challenges to doing so. Starting on a small scale and gradually broadening collaborations may be the most effective for some developing researchers, others may find working with others will provide more support, and then will eventually lead into individual projects. New faculty members who are aware of the possibilities will be best situated to explore those that work for them, and decline those that do not.
Finding collaborative partners
New faculty members can begin by imagining the direction they would like their research to go, and making a list of potential collaborators. In this way they can be strategic as they go about making decisions about how to best spend their limited research hours.
Faculty – student collaborations
Collaborators can be found in all sorts of places. Since faculty come in contact with students on a regular basis, some collaborations result from interests students want to pursue beyond assignments, or through more formal interactions between graduate students and faculty members. Collaborative research with students can be mutually beneficial in that the students begin to establish a record of publication, and faculty members continue to build their reputation and list of publications within the field with much needed help.
Faculty – faculty collaborations
Collaborations often emerge naturally from close proximity, or shared sense of purpose. As a result colleagues in the same department, college or university may work together on a project. Some collaborations occur due to common research interests. Faculty members may learn about these while attending conferences, meetings, or workshops where they encounter academic colleagues whose passions overlap theirs. These partnerships may span campuses, states or even countries when they occur.
Faculty – community collaborations
Each campus resides within a larger geographical community of non-academic entities, and the needs of community members may coincide with research interests of faculty members. These academic / community member partnerships can be mutually beneficial in many respects, and help connect the theory generated on campuses to practice.
Collaborator roles
Once a research partner has been determined, it is critical to establish not only what will be undertaken, but also what roles each collaborator will take in the partnership. Clear expectations from the outset will facilitate a smoother working relationship later in the process. All members of the collaboration do not have to have the same roles. Each partner may be a full participant in all aspects of the research, or once they get together to determine research questions and methodology, one of them may collect data, while the other has a greater role in analysis and writing. Relative roles may depend upon the novice-expert continuum, with the more novice collaborators undertaking the basic tasks, while taking a lesser role in the more complex phases of the research. There is no one right formula, but many problems can be avoided through clear communication about responsibilities, preferably in writing, and at the outset.
Models of collaboration
Collaborations may consist of co-researching, co-authoring or co-presenting, and there are endless ways the work may be divided up. As long as all are in agreement, collaborations can be extremely rewarding, and are one way to make a lot of progress towards a research agenda in a relatively short time.
Challenges of collaboration
Even in the best of circumstances some challenges may arise when collaborating. As in all research, strict ethical standards are of utmost importance, and any real or apparent uneven benefits from the research need to be negotiated clearly and with great care and transparency. Credit must be given when it is due for all work completed, caution must be taken to protect any research partners who are at risk due to the sensitive nature of the research, and there may be liability issues to address. Careful planning and consideration of possible negative outcomes may go a long way towards minimizing these potential challenges or eliminating them altogether.
Collaborative Research Design
Collaborative Research
Erickson, S. & Muskavitch, K. Office of Research Initiatives, RCR Adminstrators, Boston College
This site offers a number of modules about the responsible conduct of research, one of which is about collaborative research. It offers information on types of collaborations and situations, expectations, agreements, liability issues, as well as some case studies, a quiz, and further resources.
What is the Collaborative Research Model?
Teaching and Learning Center, University of Oregon
This website outlines a flexible method for engaging student learning teams in collaborative research, outlining five core principles that span design of such projects. It has been developed by the Teaching Effectiveness Program.
Examples of Collaborative Research
Home Away from Home: Collaborative Research Networks and Interdisciplinary Socio-Legal Scholarship
Scheingold, S. (December, 2008). Annual Review of Law & Social Science, Vol. 4
This paper asserts that interdisciplinary research has long been suspect within the disciplines, and that it is hard for such scholarship to gain traction in the academic community. The Law and Society Association has been fostering interdisciplinary research, and has created Collaborative Research Networks to establish structures and processes for interdisciplinary scholars to locate opportunities, training, and rewards.
Collaborative Research Networks
Engel, D., University of Buffalo
This site lists a number of Collaborative Research Networks related to law and society. These CRNs facilitate international research collaboration.
Collaborative University-Community Research Teams
Nyden, P., Center for Urban Research and Learning (CURL), Loyola University, Chicago
CURL is an innovative, non-traditional research center that only engages in research where community organizations are involved in conceptualization and development of the research projects.
Research Strategies: Lessons from the Collaborative Grants
The Media Research Hub, Social Science Research Council
The SSRC has funded 44 collaborative grants in media and communication since 2006, as incentives for researchers, activists, and advocates to work together to define and address critical knowledge needs. This effort is designed to make the field better by producing and bringing to bear high quality research in the service of a richer, more participatory public sphere. This is a summary of conclusions about the collaborative grants process and the field.
A Recipe for Collaborative Research
Adams, S., Carter, N., et.al. (September / October, 2006). BizEd, Bentley College Social Networks Analysis Project
This is a study of cross-disciplinary solutions, an initiative to encourage collaborative research that cuts across traditional departmental boundaries.
Crossing Disciplinary Boundaries: Opportunities for Undergraduate Research and Fun for Faculty
Singer, J., Abstract No: 76644. Earth Sciences Department, Buffalo State College
This abstract describes efforts to cross traditional boundaries with undergrads in research, while providing faculty with opportunities to collaborate across the campus.
Artists in Industry and the Academy: Collaborative Research, Interdisciplinary Scholarship, and the Interpretation of Hybrid Forms
Shanken, E.A. (May, 2005). MIT Press
This author surveys contemporary artist-engineer-scientist collaborations in industry and the academy.
Ethics of Collaborative Research
Checklist of Characteristics of Collaborative Research Relationships with Indigenous Partners
Kishk Anaquot Health Research (2007). Canadian Coalition for Global Health Research
These nine principles are designed to promote equity in global health research.
Ethical Issues for Collaborative Research in Developing Countries
Caballero, B., Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (2002). American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 76, No. 4, p. 717-720
This paper outlines some of the ethical issues involved when a collaboration involves a developed country and a less-developed country from the perspective of scientists, from developed countries doing collaborative research in less-developed countries.
Ethical Review Issues in Collaborative Research Between U.S. and Low-Middle Income Country Partners: A Case Example
McIntosh, S., et.al. (2008). Bioethics, Vol. 22, Iss. 8, p. 414-422, published online
The current ethical structure for collaborative international health research stems largely from developed countries’ standards of proper ethical practices. The result is that ethical committees in developing countries are required to adhere to standards that might impose practices that conflict with local culture and unintended interpretations of ethics, treatments, and research.
Research ethics committees, Africa Style
Global Bioethics Blog (January 3, 2007)
This blog focuses on issues of ethics in sub-saharan Africa.
Challenges of Collaborative Research
Authorship Ethics: Issues and Suggested Guidelines for the Helping Professions
Nguyen, T. & Nguyen, T.D. (2006). Counseling and Values
The authors review common ethical dilemmas related to publishing research, particularly when collaboration is a part of the research.
Encouraging Research Collaboration Through Ethical and Fair Authorship: A Model Policy
Washburn, J. (January, 2008). Ethics & Behavior,Vol. 18, Iss. 1, p. 44-58
A comprehensive approach to evidence-based practice requires collaboration of academic researchers and practicing clinicians, which is likely to contribute to the growing trend of multi-investigator projects, multiple-authored publications, and the subsequent conflicts regarding authorship credit and order. A model policy for such work is outlined in this paper, derived from recommendations in the literature, in ethical standards, and in the editorial policies of psychological and biomedical fields.
Collaborative Research: Liability Issues
Responsible Conduct of Research, Office of Research Integrity, Department of Health and Human Services
This site has a number of tutorials and case studies related to ethical research. This particular article addresses the issue of liability.
Collaborative Research: Accomplishments & Potential
Katsouyanni, K. (2008). Environmental Health, Vol. 7, No. 3
Although a substantial part of scientific research is collaborative, very few studies investigate the advantages, disadvantages, experiences and lessons learned from collaboration. This paper attempts to initiate such a discussion in the area of environmental epidemiology.
Research and Collaboration. Business Communication, and Technology: Reflections on an Interdisciplinary Academic Collaboration
Forman, J. & Markus, M. L. (2005). The Journal of Business Communication, Vol. 42
Although interdisciplinary research is recommended, little has been written about the personal, practical, and methodological issues involved. This paper describes one research collaboration between a business communication scholar and an information systems researcher, and presents observations about the political pitfalls and personal benefits of their collaboration. An excerpt is available at this site.
