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No part of this work may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher, with the exception of any material supplied specifically for the purpose of being entered and executed on a computer system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work.Printed on acid-free paper The nature of "community" has changed considerably since the first edition of this book; it has become more firmly established as an artifact of technology. A generation of youth who have not experienced community of "place" now have the capability of connecting with others by touching a keypad or joining an online network. Information is accessed; merchandise is purchased; classes are taught; marriage partners are found; self-help is available; and entertainment, chat groups, and even bullying now characterize the ways we connect with each other on a daily basis across geographical, social, and cultural boundaries.As human beings, we reach out to create systems of relationships. We need social connections to survive, reach goals, and leave legacies. We are curious adapting animals and so we continuously seek new ways of connecting as our needs change. We have created new elements of technology to enhance our connectedness. We are constantly being changed by an on-going culture of technology that shapes our individual and collective lives.Scholars and researchers debate and gather data to show us the positive and negative aspects of the influence of technology on our communications in an effort to make future changes more helpful than hurtful. There is concern on the part of some that there is a superficiality of connectedness in our experiences with one another driven by expediency, competition, and individualism resulting in decreased face-to-face relationships and tentative trust. It has been found that trust can be established online; however, trust is more readily established and durable when there are connections that facilitate continuous, dense networks of reciprocity that face-to-face interactions do rather quickly. Trust is essential in relationships because it encourages people to invest themselves in one another in groups and in social institutions. For example, some workplaces are more technology driven than others; many "workplaces" have been replaced by mobile ones whereby face-to-face encounters with colleagues need to be scheduled. Connectedness is more dependent upon necessity rather than establishing working connections enveloped in trust. Similarly, online academic courses lose some of the ambience of a classroom environment centered around face-to-face dialogue with peers and the instructor. Community still remains a viable and key concept in human relations; it has merely changed in meaning and measurement. Preface x PrefaceThe goal of the second edition of this book is to acquaint the reader with how connections are vital to their existence and in the performanc...

Interdisciplinary research has many faces--a philosophy, an art form, an artifact, and an antidote. It is all of these things because interdisciplinary research attempts to ask questions in ways that cut across disciplinary boundaries. This is not politically correct and universities especially find it difficult to manage interdisciplinarians and their projects. The author argues that interdisciplinary research has persisted as an alternative when traditional research approaches have failed to come up with answers to common problems. Interdisciplinary research will continue to survive as long as there are creative, risk-taking scientists who are dissatisfied with the political and organizational boundaries we establish around disciplines which limit our ability to learn about their commonalities.

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Interdisciplinary research is not a common research paradigm. To venture from their customary disciplinary tenets and methods and risk new methodological approaches, or to compromise in order to accommodate the differences in the way disciplines approach research, requires the commitment of investigators. This paper discusses the interdisciplinary research paradigm, its culture, and how it differs from traditional research methods, and provides examples of successful and unsuccessful interdisciplinary research projects.