The perception of interdisciplinary research collaboration (PIRC) scale is a meticulously developed and validated tool comprising 64 items, crafted through concept analysis, content validity procedures, and expert panel refinement. Pilot testing involved 1,932 academic staff members from six universities in South-South Nigeria, revealing six dimensions: “challenges of IDR collaboration,” “IDR collaborative experiences,” “motivations for IDR collaboration,” “benefits of IDR collaboration,” “career impact of IDR collaboration,” and “IDR team dynamics.” Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed this structure, establishing strong convergent and discriminant validity. Reliability analysis indicated high internal consistency, making the PIRC scale a precise instrument for assessing interdisciplinary research collaboration. Its use enables stakeholders to understand researchers' perceptions, enhance collaboration, allocate resources efficiently, and foster innovation.
TopIntroduction
Research is an action-oriented process involving a series of systematic procedures to create knowledge, identify problems and seek ways of dealing with such issues to improve man's understanding of the environment and other phenomena surrounding it. The primary essence of research is knowledge creation, modification and problem-solving (Odigwe et al., 2020; Owan & Bassey, 2019). This means that innovative approaches are required to keep the industry of knowledge creation and rapid evolution functional at all times for a better exploration and understanding of the environment (Bassey & Owan, 2018). Before the 1970s, research was bound by discipline (Allmendinger, 2015; Kulkarni, 2015; Van Rijnsoever & Hessels, 2011) where scholars of the same field partnered on research investigations for problem-solving and knowledge creation. In any case, as the focus started moving from fundamental investigations to settling greater difficulties (e.g., complex educational problems, environmental change, food and water emergency, general health, and recently, the emergence of big data and so on) research needed to rise above the limits of disciplines, making progress for interdisciplinary research.
Interdisciplinary research is a method of research by groups of people that coordinates information, data, strategies, apparatuses, viewpoints, ideas, hypotheses and theories from at least two disciplines to propel major understanding or to take care of issues whose solutions are beyond the extent of a single discipline. Klaassen (2018) offers an alternative definition, describing interdisciplinary research as the combination of methods, knowledge, skills, theories, and perspectives from different disciplines to foster innovative solutions and advance knowledge in uncharted problem areas. Interdisciplinary research varies from multidisciplinary research where specialists of different disciplines work independently on various parts of an expansive issue (Choi & Pak, 2007). Interdisciplinary research can likewise be distinguished from transdisciplinary research, where specialists absorb disciplinary-explicit theories and ideas to take care of an issue while limiting the isolation of the different disciplines (Fuqua, 2012).
This research approach has gained prominence, with institutional leaders championing interdisciplinary research, resulting in a rise in the number of interdisciplinary dissertations in recent years (Kniffin et al., 2021). Interdisciplinary research, characterized as the integration of knowledge, methods, and theories from various disciplines to tackle complex problems or gain a deeper understanding of a particular phenomenon (Bromham et al., 2016), has generated diverse findings in terms of its impact. Some studies suggest that interdisciplinary research can lead to greater benefits and influence, while others report mixed results or a lack of support for increased impact (Bromham et al., 2016). Since interdisciplinary research exceeds the regular scope of a discipline, numerous specialists and researchers across the globe accept that interdisciplinary research can resolve complex issues that solitary discipline research cannot (Barković, 2010; Kulkarni, 2015; Sherren et al., 2009). For instance, the field of computer science has been significantly influenced by interdisciplinary research, enabling the resolution of complex problems (Chakraborty, 2017). In addressing complex environmental issues, interdisciplinary research is often essential for developing a comprehensive understanding of integrated systems (Bark et al., 2016).