Designing an Interdisciplinary Research Culture in Higher Education: A Case Study
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Designing an Interdisciplinary Research Culture in Higher Education: A Case Study P. J. White1 · Colin Deevy1 Received: 21 January 2020 / Accepted: 20 April 2020 © Springer Nature B.V. 2020
Abstract Design methods and processes are now commonly used across disciplines as an approach to gain deeper and more connected understanding within complex or wicked problems. However, little research exists on the use of Design to facilitate and grow interdisciplinary research culture within higher education institutes. This paper discusses how and why Design methods were used to create an interdisciplinary research culture in a newly emergent and rapidly evolving higher education environment. It uses a case study of a teaching orientated higher education institute, now moving towards Technological University status, and seeking to create an Interdisciplinary research culture. It discusses the process of using Design to create a unifying research identity, Design methods in mapping and framing of research landscapes, designing dissemination platforms, and Co-designing future research policy for the institute. Keywords Interdisciplinary research · Research culture · Design thinking · Co-design · Design methods · Higher education
Introduction Interdisciplinary research is increasingly being encouraged within higher education institutes. Internationally, in many large funding calls, there is a growing requirement for multiple researchers to work across disciplines to address complex research questions that face society. The European Commission for example, through its Horizon research and Innovation programme, promotes the “…bringing together of resources and knowledge across different fields, technologies and disciplines” using a “challenge based approach” to create new research discoveries (European Commission 2014, para. 1). According to the Irish Research Council this challenge based approach “…does not align neatly along disciplinary lines, and the overall focus is * P. J. White [email protected] 1
DesignCORE, Humanities, Institute of Technology Carlow, Carlow, Republic of Ireland
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about contributing to solving complex external problems rather than adding to the knowledge base within the discipline” (2018, p. 3). There is also a growing requirement within future funding streams to be both interdisciplinary and inclusive. For example, the Tri agency fund in Canada focuses on international, interdisciplinary, inclusive research with support for early career researchers. (Government of Canada 2018). The growing need for interdisciplinary research could pose both opportunities and threats for higher education institutes with a new or emergent research culture. Established universities with long serving research capacity can, for example, establish interdisciplinary groups with greater ease, for younger institutes this can be more challenging. However, within these settings there is an opportunity to create unique and sustainable interdisciplinary research cultures that
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