Integrating and managing multidisciplinary teams in agricultural and NRM [natural resources management] research
2000
Janssen, W. | Goldsworthy, P.
Multidisciplinary research is increasingly used to address problems in the domain of natural resource management (NRM). Multidisciplinarity helps bridge gaps in problem solving that result from disciplinary specialization. It helps integrate the results from different disciplines and allows research to address subjects that lie beyond the disciplinary skills of individual scientist. For the multidisciplinary approach to work, a multidisciplinary team must carefully define the research problem and maintain a clear focus on it. It is essential that team members agree on the objectives. This agreement can be achieved using systems theory and participatory planning. Team members must possess not only disciplinary excellence but also good communication skills. The team leader, whose main task is helping to elicit ideas rather than directing the team, should foster these qualities. The evaluation of team members should take into account individual progress toward the goals as well as an individual's contribution to resolving problems. Multidisciplinary research is most effective when conducted in a project mode, because this keep organizational goals and expectations simple. To avoid unrealistic expectations and to ensure that the team maintains a clear goal orientation, intermediate objectives should be set
显示更多 [+] 显示较少 [-]