interdisciplinary research & writing

IRISH ACACEMY OF MANAGEMENT INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH - ANNE HUFF HUFF 1

Anne Sigismund Huff

INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH &

WRITING

Irish Academy of Management23 April 2013

PROLOGUE

The scientific community shapes– the way the world is understood and– the definition of problems worth solving

To be a ‘scholar’ it is necessary to connect with a scientific community & interact with their

worldview and problem definition


Overview

1. Description of the research/publication task and its inherent difficulties Argument that these difficulties increase as

disciplinary boundaries are brought together, crossed, or transcended

2. Description of real world complexities, new pressures and their inherent difficulties Advice for research and writing if you decide 2

is more important than 1


Inherent sensemaking difficulties of research and publication

Designing Research for Publication (2008)

sensemaking

sensegiving

Academic Presentations& Publications

Individual Scholar

sensegiving

sensemaking

Figure 1.1: The Sensemaking/Sensegiving Circle of Scholarship

sensemaking

sensegiving

Academic Presentations& Publications

Individual Scholar

sensegiving

sensemaking

Figure 1.1: The Sensemaking/Sensegiving Circle of Scholarship

It is not easy to make sense of the literature

It is difficult to send sense back –

i.e. publish

7

2004 AOM Organizational Management and THEORY Division

D

David Whetten

8

2004 AoM Organizational Management and THEORY Division

Hard to make sense of even one

sub-discipline!

At ONE meeting

Figure 2.1: The Scholar’s Sensemaking Task

Other Experience

My Scholarly Activities

Sensemaking Sensemaking Sensegiving Sensegiving

SensegivingSensemaking SensemakingSensegiving

THIS isinteresting / engaging significant / enduring

trustworthy / authoritative

WHAT is interesting / engaging?significant / enduring ?

trustworthy / authoritative?

The academic conversations that

interest me

Figure 2.1: The Scholar’s Sensemaking Task

Other Experience

My Scholarly Activities

Sensemaking Sensemaking Sensegiving Sensegiving

SensegivingSensemaking SensemakingSensegiving

THIS isinteresting / engaging significant / enduring

trustworthy / authoritative

WHAT is interesting / engaging?significant / enduring ?

trustworthy / authoritative?

The academic conversations that

interest me

Contribution often comes from unique experience

Which adds its own

complexity

Figure 10.1: A “Virtuous Circle” of Interaction with Practice and Policy

ScholarsPractitioners &Policy Makers

Suggestions for Adaptation to Practice

Suggestions forTheory & Research

We work in business schools –

many think we should also

acknowledge organisational perspectives!

Joint research designreflecting different objectives, interpretive

Frames, etc.

´Outside`Scholar

´Inside`Collaborator

OtherScholars

SocialSetting

ImprovedExplanations

ImprovedPerformance

Theoretic Gaps &Disagreements

Problems, AgendasObservations, Theories-in-use

Figure 10.3: “Inside/Outside” Collaborations

I am interested in

collaboration, much more challenging

Figure 1.4: An Overly Ambitious Conversational Map

Philosophical Discussion Z

Philosophical Discussion X

AcademicSubject

P

Area of Practice1

AcademicSubject

N

ProfessionalLiterature A

Area of Practice 2

ProfessionalLiterature B

AcademicSubject

O

Philosophical Discussion Y

My Project

AcademicSubject

M

Experience

Education

Maybe policy &practical issues

from mycontext

(prof lit 2)

Maybe secondaryinterest &a source

of ideas for explanation

(input from Z or P)

Conversationassociated with a field

(Academic M) that fits my training & interests,

also providing presentation & publication opportunities

Figure 1.5: A Manageable Conversational Map

The conversationI want to contribute to

.

.

.My Project


In other words, defining and carrying out a research project is not easy!

I believe that difficulties increase as disciplinary boundaries are

brought together (multidisciplinary)crossed (interdisciplinary)

or relaxed (transdisciplinary)

360° Multidisciplinary Ideal

PROJECT

Discipline 1

Discipline 2

Discipline 3

Discipline 4


Can work well As a design principle for curriculum design

(e.g. MBA) or a text book In large scholarly projects to which individuals from

different disciplines contribute e.g. Changes along the US/Canadian boarder that should influence government policy – inputs from economics, sociology, political science, etc.

To explain complicated issues in the ‘real world’ Exemplar: Graham Allison’s Essence of Decision

Cuban Missile Crisis (Rational Action Model, Organizational Process Model, Governmental Politics Model)


Often difficult to publish multidisciplinary work

Each discipline has its own - theoretic history - vocabulary - contexts of interest - methods - current AGENDA, etc. etc. Audience from one discipline less interested in,

accepting of, able to understand, the complexities of other disciplines

Figure 1.2: Two Conversations about Similar Topics I and I’

Conversation about org

identity

Conversation about org identity2

Theory z

Subfield

Journals Ŏ,Ő,Θ

Journals Ş,Ŝ,Ś

Profession M Discipline S

Ontology/epistemology

methodology

Ontology/epistemology

Subfield Subfield

Base Discipline P

Professional association Professional association

methodology methodology

Theory xTheory y

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

Internet citations obscure different

conversations


Structure of publishing reflects this reality

Most journals are associated with specific disciplines

- editors and reviewers understand that discipline, believe it is important - likely to prioritise ‘on target’ submissions

FREQUENT SOLUTION Import a few ideas from another discipline (ONE, maybe two) as a contribution to primary conversation – the author translates


Multidisciplinary inquiry leads to new fields

• Chemistry and Biology • History and Psychology • Economics and Sociology

Note the bold (one field seems to dominate, at least in the beginning)

Interdisciplinary ideal

From manyTo

SynthesisTo few


Experience outside academics often important

Engineering, biology … NANOSCIENCE Practice

Strategy, economics… ENTREPRENEURSHIP Practice


RESEARCH AND PUBLISHING DIFFICULTIES POSED BY THE

“REAL WORLD”


LIFE is complex (especially if you are a constructivist)

Even post-positivists, realists, etc. admit limits to human understanding

Unacknowledged antecedents & unanticipated consequences of action

make learning difficult Constructivists argue that the world itself is

indeterminate, unfolding makes prediction difficult


In other words

Academic silos (encouraged by research and publishing norms) fall short

Often we are not able to be helpful

When we are, we often rise above disciple


Transdisciplinary Ideal


When is Transdisciplinarity required?

• Global Security (politics, computing, economics, sociology, corporations, etc. etc. etc.)

Platforms for acting are woefully inadequate

Great need for specialized understanding, which is woefully inadequate

What to publish??? Where????


ADVICEif you are drawn to

multi/inter/trans disciplinary


1. DO NOT WAIT …until you have more time, more freedom,

more security

it is likely to be too late

you will become what you do in the meantime


2. TAKE A PORTFOLIO PERSPECIVE Very risky to give all your attention to new

approaches Give significant attention to projects that are

relatively easy to do, and publish a few multidisciplinary projects make sense from a lifestyle perspective, to learn how to do a new kind of work, and as seeds for later projects

SPEND MORE TIME PRUNING THAN ADDING TO A PORTFOLIO !


The root of DECIDE means “to cut”

Scissors

Incisors


3. LOOK FOR EXEMPLARS

Think about whether it is necessary to invent the wheel – the more interesting work likely to be beyond first steps

Look at news Look for existing research, websites, etc.


4. ALLY WITH FELLOW TRAVELLERS Remember that academic research is a

social activity

Remember that you will be evaluated by the company you keep – but beware if you care about elitism very much

Almost all innovation happens at the periphery not in the middle or at the top


5. MAXIMIZE LINKS AMONG TEACHING, SERVICE & RESEARCH

Even in required modules with a syllabus, choose examples, speakers, etc. from your area of interest

In other words, teach yourself

shift, de-emphasize, delegate, etc. to make your life easier, but also to bring coherence to your activity and thinking


6. WRITE A FORMAL STATEMENT JUSTIFYING YOUR OVERALL

RESEARCH AGENDA Introduce with a statement of who you are --

your identity as a scholar How the subjects you study relate Future plans and dates

Especially, publication plans ASSESS PRIMARILY FROM AN EXTERNAL

PERSPECTIVE, RETHINK IF RESULTS ARE NOT COMFORTABLE FROM YOUR INTERNAL PERSPECTIVE


i.e. Write an “academic portfolio” – you need a map and your evaluators will need a map

http://www.hr.uwa.edu.au/working/promotion/academic/portfolio#academic

www.ouhsc.edu/.../Portfolio_Research_AAP_2012_vwlf_000.pdf




http://www.ouhsc.edu/.../Portfolio_Research_AAP_2012_vwlf_000.pdf








Prepare for the journalist at your doorPrepare for research funding proposals

You should be able to say why your work is important and interesting in simple words


Last Thought


Prepare for Anti-Disciplinary! MIT Media Lab Director: Joi Ito http://www.wired.co.uk/magazine/archive/2012/11/features/open-university?page=all

Ito was originally rejected for the role because he lacked academic credentials. "The search committee said out of courtesy …send him an email appreciating his interest but …he didn't qualify," Nicholas Negroponte recalls….

"Six months later, we came up empty, with no candidate. And Joi's name floated back to the top of the list. I sent Joi an email -- where are you? He said, I'm in the Bahamas. I said get your ass up to MIT as soon as you can. He came two days later [and got the job]."

http://www.wired.co.uk/magazine/archive/2012/11/features/open-university?page=all



http://web.media.mit.edu/~nicholas/


[MIT] Media Lab is a community of inventors who work atelier style as members of research teams, doing the things that conventional wisdom says can’t or shouldn't be done

http://www.media.mit.edu/admissions/program-overview

Needed, to some extent, in all areas of inquiry

http://curiosity.discovery.com/question/future-for-media-lab


http://thenextweb.tumblr.com/post/11696874984/director-of-mits-media-lab-joi-ito-we-like-to

Director of MIT’s Media Lab Joi Ito : “We like to think of ourselves as anti-disciplinary in our approach to learning. Everyone here is deeply devoted to their field, but very respectful of each other and it shows.”

Ito points to the architecture of the Lab itself as part of the process for collaboration. Rebuilt in 2009, the Media Lab extension space was designed by Japanese architect Fumihiko Maki. Students from various disciplines can peek through the expansive glass walls and find inspiration in each other’s projects. According to Ito, it’s through this spirit of collaboration and respect that innovations like Yo Yo Ma’s hypercello sensors can later inspire technologies in car airbags.

http://park.org/Events/BrainOpera/Archive/Hyperinstruments/hypercello.html http://web.media.mit.edu/~joep/SpectrumWeb/captions/Cello.html

http://park.org/Events/BrainOpera/Archive/Hyperinstruments/hypercello.html

http://park.org/Events/BrainOpera/Archive/Hyperinstruments/hypercello.html


References Boyer, Ernest (1997). Scholarship Reconsidered. Carnegie. Gibbons, Michael; Camille Limoges, Helga Nowotny, Simon

Schwartzman, Peter Scott, & Martin Trow (1994). The new production of knowledge: the dynamics of science and research in contemporary societies. Sage.Mode 1 (academic based) and Mode 2 (problem based) knowledge creation

Huff, Anne (2008). Designing Research for Publication. Sage. Huff, Anne S & James O Huff. (2001) Re-focusing the business school

agenda. British Journal of Management 12 (s1), S49-S54 Mode 3 (ethics) Huff, Anne (2000). Changes in Organizational Knowledge Production.

Academy of Management Review 25 (2), 288-293 Mode 1.5 (between academics and practice) Nowotny, Helga; Peter Scott & Michael Gibbons (2001). Rethinking

science: knowledge in an age of uncertainty. Cambridge: Polity

interdisciplinary research & writing

Documents

publicationdesigning

scholars sensemaking

interesting engaging

aom organizational management

theory divisionhard

inherent difficultiesargument

inherent difficultiesadvice

academic conversations