Establishing and maintaining international collaborative research teams: an autobiographical insight

Abstract

Despite the growing impetus for international collaborative research teams (ICRT), there are relatively few resources available to guide and support researchers through the processes of establishing and maintaining ICRTs. In particular, no articles were found that provided researchers' firsthand accounts of being a member of such a team. Having access to such personal accounts can help both experienced and novice researchers learn more directly about what to expect, as well as the benefits, challenges, pitfalls, and success strategies for establishing and maintaining ICRTs. The authors used phenomenological autobiographical reflective journaling to capture their experiences as members of ICRTs. In this article we provide an overview of key themes that emerged from the analysis of our reflections as members of ICRTs. These themes include: benefits, challenges, and strategies for success. Our aim is to share our first-hand experiences of what it is like to establish and participate in ICRT. It is not our intention to provide readers with prescriptive guidelines on how to set up and maintain ICRTs. Every ICRT is unique and some of these ideas may or may not apply in every case. Instead, we are describing what worked for us, hoping that others may benefit from our experience. Consequently, we suggest that the focus of ICRT should be on the benefits thereof which promote and encourage interaction between disciplines, transfer of knowledge and techniques and personal and professional development.

Doing Case Study Research Collaboratively: The Benefits for Researchers

“…The findings from this study highlight that collaborative research teams provide an opportunity for likeminded academics, irrespective of research experience, to share knowledge and develop research profiles in a proficient yet enjoyable manner. Most notably these participants identified that collegiality, authenticity and working alongside researchers with shared aspirations and goals were important aspects of the collaborative process and, as such, align with previous studies by Carr et al (2013), Bozeman and Boardman (2014) and Yuan and Jing (2014). Furthermore, participants' personal values such as trust and respect were key to the team becoming a cohesive unit through which creativity flourished.…”

“…A collaborative research team can be defined as a coalition between researchers who share collective goals, aspirations and responsibilities in conducting research (Carr et al, 2013). Collaboration between institutions and across international borders brings research talent together to work on complex projects that would be difficult to conduct in isolation (Broome, 1999; Carr et al, 2013).…”

“…A collaborative research team can be defined as a coalition between researchers who share collective goals, aspirations and responsibilities in conducting research (Carr et al, 2013). Collaboration between institutions and across international borders brings research talent together to work on complex projects that would be difficult to conduct in isolation (Broome, 1999; Carr et al, 2013). Sharing research talent and skill in collaborative multi-site teams also potentially results in more productivity, and higher quality research outputs which has a direct impact on productivity (Bossert et al, 2002).…”

“…Increasingly collaborative research teams are being developed amongst researchers from different countries and institutions to achieve collective research goals. Evidence suggests that such alliances come with benefits and challenges (Carr et al, 2013). While having a number of researchers, institutions and countries expands professional networks and enables sharing of resources, expertise, and increases productivity, challenges around team dynamics, personal characteristics, structural factors and qualities of leadership can negatively impact the success of such teams (Carr et al, 2013; Omar & Ahmad, 2014).…”

“…Evidence suggests that such alliances come with benefits and challenges (Carr et al, 2013). While having a number of researchers, institutions and countries expands professional networks and enables sharing of resources, expertise, and increases productivity, challenges around team dynamics, personal characteristics, structural factors and qualities of leadership can negatively impact the success of such teams (Carr et al, 2013; Omar & Ahmad, 2014). For collaborative teams to be successful in achieving their goals a positive team culture, whereby team members are professional with a realistic and honest commitment to perform, needs to be established (Carr et al, 2013; Omar & Ahmad, 2014).…”