CMAJ • November 24, 2009; 181 (11). First published November 9, 2009; doi:10.1503/cmaj.090661
© 2009 Canadian Medical Association or its licensors
All editorial matter in CMAJ represents the opinions of the authors and not necessarily those of the Canadian Medical Association.
This Article
Right arrow Figures Only
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow All Versions of this Article:
cmaj.090661v1
cmaj.090661v2
181/11/797    most recent
Right arrow Submit a response
Right arrow View responses
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when eLetters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Right arrow Citation Map
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Laberge, S.
Right arrow Articles by Hodges, B. D.
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Laberge, S.
Right arrow Articles by Hodges, B. D.
Related Collections
Right arrowRelated Article

Research

Perspectives of clinician and biomedical scientists on interdisciplinary health research

Suzanne Laberge, PhD, Mathieu Albert, PhD and Brian D. Hodges, MD PhD

From the Department of Kinesiology (Laberge), Université de Montréal, Montréal, Que.; and the Wilson Centre (Albert, Hodges), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont.

Correspondence to: Dr. Suzanne Laberge, Département de Kinésiologie, Université de Montréal, CP 6128, succ. Centre-ville, Montréal QC H3C 3J7; fax 514 343-2181; suzanne.laberge{at}umontreal.ca

Background: Interdisciplinary health research is a priority of many funding agencies. We surveyed clinician and biomedical scientists about their views on the value and funding of interdisciplinary health research.

Methods: We conducted semistructured interviews with 31 biomedical and 30 clinician scientists. The scientists were selected from the 2000–2006 membership lists of peer-review committees of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. We investigated respondents’ perspectives on the assumption that collaboration across disciplines adds value to health research. We also investigated their perspectives on funding agencies’ growing support of interdisciplinary research.

Results: The 61 respondents expressed a wide variety of perspectives on the value of interdisciplinary health research, ranging from full agreement (22) to complete disagreement (11) that it adds value; many presented qualified viewpoints (28). More than one-quarter viewed funding agencies’ growing support of interdisciplinary research as appropriate. Most (44) felt that the level of support was unwarranted. Arguments included the belief that current support leads to the creation of artificial teams and that a top-down process of imposing interdisciplinary structures on teams constrains scientists’ freedom. On both issues we found contrasting trends between the clinician and the biomedical scientists.

Interpretation: Despite having some positive views about the value of interdisciplinary research, scientists, especially biomedical scientists, expressed reservations about the growing support of interdisciplinary research.


Related Article

Highlights
Can. Med. Assoc. J. 2009 181: 769. [Full Text] [PDF]



This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 CMAJHome page
H. Savolainen
Lack of physician scientists
Can. Med. Assoc. J., January 12, 2010; 182(1): 63 - 63.
[Full Text] [PDF]

eLetters:

Read all eLetters

Interdisciplinary health research and translational medicine.
Giuseppe Lippi
CMAJ, 23 Nov 2009 [Full text]
Scarcity of physician scientists
Heikki Savolainen
CMAJ, 24 Nov 2009 [Full text]