Thinking transdisciplinarily: Question-Collaboration Workshop to ideate across disciplines

Addressing "wicked problems"-complex societal challenges without clear boundaries or solutions-requires deep integration of knowledge across disciplines and sectors (transdisciplinary collaboration). While existing frameworks and toolkits support transdisciplinary collaboration, most interventions focus on established teams rather than the ideation stage.

This study introduces the Question-Collaboration Workshop, designed to stimulate transdisciplinary thinking and foster new research teams through collaborative question generation. The workshop includes four activities: (i) the Knowledge Creation Framework to make the scientific processes explicit; (ii) Buzzword Networking to build trust and a shared language; (iii) Four Layers of Questions to iteratively combine research questions across disciplines; and (iv) the Known-Unknown Matrix to identify knowledge gaps and actionable next steps. Two workshops were implemented at U.S. land-grant universities with researchers from diverse fields. Pre- and post workshop surveys and facilitator observations were analyzed qualitatively.

Both workshops seemed to successfully generate novel transdisciplinary questions and initiate new collaborations. Participants reported greater awareness of disciplinary perspectives and enthusiasm for future engagement. Challenges included time constraints, scaling activities for larger groups, and clarifying the Known-Unknown Matrix. Feedback emphasized the need for extended sessions, broader disciplinary representation, and follow-up activities to operationalize ideas.

Findings suggest that research questions can serve as a powerful catalyst for transdisciplinary collaboration. The workshop supports team science competencies such as trust-building, shared language, and co-creation of ideas. Limitations include small sample size and lack of longitudinal follow-up. Future work should refine activities, assess scalability, and evaluate long-term impacts on team formation and knowledge production.

The Question-Collaboration Workshop demonstrates promise as an intervention to foster transdisciplinary thinking at the ideation stage. By leveraging researchers' intrinsic curiosity, this approach can help assemble diverse teams to address complex societal challenges.