Publication Date
5-2024
Date of Final Oral Examination (Defense)
3-1-2024
Type of Culminating Activity
Thesis
Degree Title
Master of Arts in Anthropology
Department Filter
Anthropology
Department
Anthropology
Supervisory Committee Chair
John Ziker, PhD
Supervisory Committee Member
Vicken Hillis, PhD
Supervisory Committee Member
Stephen Crowely, PhD
Abstract
The likelihood of academic collaboration is influenced by specific characteristics that vary across attributes and associations. For instance, social networks have been found to influence the adoption of evidence-based instructional practices and interdisciplinary research performance. This study examines research collaboration practices at a university to support initiatives in increasing interdisciplinary collaboration. Purpose: The study has three aims: 1) to characterize existing collaborative research practices under the university systems and policies in effect at the start of this project in a sample of faculty researchers; 2) to gain a better understanding of the historical network structure of research using collaborative grant proposal data; and 3) to understand the network characteristics of recently-established, thematically-focused research teams that the university-sponsored to address Grand Challenges (GCs) — wicked problems as they manifest regionally in Idaho. Thus, the thesis provides two baselines for assessing future social networks of research collaboration and collaborative practices: the overall collaborative grant proposal network and the effectiveness of research team support strategies. Hypothesis: Diverse social networks lead to more innovative thinking, greater productivity, and the overall value of research. Networks that exhibit parochialism and inequality are less innovative and productive and tend to benefit those already successful. Networks with limited brokerage tend to have disciplinary connections. Methods: I conducted semi-structured interviews of n = 5 faculty and utilized focus group data on research collaboration. Social network analysis methods analyze a network of collaborative grant proposals at Boise State from 2016 to 2020, including whole network statistics and predictive modeling using exponential random graph methods (ERGM) to assess predictors of tie formation. Survey responses from researchers in GCs teams outline team interactions and experience diversity before the infusion of network treatments. Statistical Analysis: ERGM results of the grant proposal network indicate uniform homophily (intra-college co-proposing) and selective mixing (connection patterns based on proposal volume) also significantly predict tie formation. Results: Thematic analysis reveals that collaboration is shaped by academic culture, institutional structures, and interpersonal dynamics, influencing its perception and practice and affecting the balance between collaborative and individual research efforts. Analysis of the collaborative grant proposal network uncovers disparities in collaborative opportunities. Furthermore, the network's year-over-year analysis, particularly in 2020, spotlighted the pandemic's disproportionate impact on collaborative efforts, with the highest levels of network connectivity and cumulative advantage observed alongside the lowest number of collaborators and proposals. Selective mixing analysis exposed a clear preferential attachment pattern that intensified as the researchers increased their grant proposal activity. The distribution of researchers with high betweenness centrality (brokers) reveals a select few occupy significant broker roles, potentially facilitating interdisciplinary collaborations within the research network. A comprehensive strategy details network treatment methods and evaluation of support strategies to foster exemplary research teams while expanding campus-wide research opportunities. Discussion: The analysis highlighted significant disparities in collaborative opportunities within Boise State's grant proposal network, emphasizing the emergence of scientific stars due to cumulative advantage. This imbalance suggests a need for strategic interventions to foster more equitable collaboration. There is a noted tendency among researchers to collaborate within their disciplines, indicating potential obstacles to interdisciplinary efforts. This thesis proposes measuring interdisciplinary treatments to evaluate and enhance the success of efforts to increase interdisciplinary collaboration. The study advocates for using the betweenness centrality metric in selecting GCs team members to include researchers not currently serving as interdisciplinary brokers. This approach aims to expand the network's capacity for diverse connections across research communities. Empirical evidence supports that increasing interconnections between research communities will elevate interdisciplinary collaborations. The study underscores the potential of well-connected networks to create a self-sustaining environment for interdisciplinary partnerships, reducing the need for additional interventions.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.18122/td.2143.boisestate
Recommended Citation
Gaudio, Eva Lorraine, "The Dawn of Advanced Collaborative Practices: Charting Transdisciplinary Synergies Through Thematic and Social Network Analysis within Boise State's Grand Challenges Initiative" (2024). Boise State University Theses and Dissertations. 2143.
https://doi.org/10.18122/td.2143.boisestate
