A new transdisciplinary research model to investigate and improve the health of the public

The PAICE project: Integrating health and health equity into UK climate change policy

This paper announces a new initiative - the research project Policy and Implementation for Climate & Health Equity (PAICE), which aims to investigate the complex systemic connections between climate change action, health and health equity, for translation of evidence into policy and practice in the UK. Using transdisciplinary approaches, PAICE will: (1) co-develop a programme theory and linked monitoring and evaluation plan, (2) work with the UK Climate Change Committee (CCC) and the Greater London Authority (GLA) using system dynamics to analyse national and local policy opportunities, (3) build an integrated model of the effects of these policies on population health, health equity and greenhouse gas emissions, (4) apply the findings to the CCC monitoring framework and GLA policy development, and (5) use the programme theory to help evaluate achievement of PAICE processes and objectives. If successful, PAICE will have helped to establish a systems capability to (i) monitor whether Government plans are on track to deliver their climate targets and associated health impacts and (ii) understand how relevant policy and implementation approaches could be enhanced.

From Promise to Practice: How Health Researchers Understand and Promote Transdisciplinary Collaboration

There is an increasing emphasis on transdisciplinary research to address the complex challenges faced by health systems. However, research has not adequately explored how members of transdisciplinary research teams perceive, understand, and promote transdisciplinary collaboration. As such, there is a need to investigate collaborative behaviors, knowledge, and the impacts of transdisciplinary research. To address this gap, we conducted a longitudinal realist evaluation of transdisciplinary collaboration within a 5-year National Health and Medical Research Council-funded Center of Research Excellence in Transdisciplinary Frailty Research. The current study aimed to explore researchers' perceptions and promotion of transdisciplinary research specifically within the context of frailty research using qualitative methods. Participants described transdisciplinary research as a collaborative and integrative approach that involves individuals from various disciplines working together to tackle complex research problems. However, participants often used terms like interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary interchangeably, indicating that a shared understanding of transdisciplinary research is needed. Barriers to transdisciplinary collaboration included time constraints, geographical distance, and entrenched collaboration patterns. To overcome these challenges, participants suggested implementing strategies such as creating a shared vision and goals, establishing appropriate collaboration systems and structures, and role modeling collaborative behaviors, values, and attitudes. Our findings underscore the need for practical knowledge in developing transdisciplinary collaboration and leadership skills across different career stages. In the absence of formal training, sustained and immersive programs that connect researchers with peers, educators, and role models from various disciplines and provide experiential learning opportunities, may be valuable in fostering successful transdisciplinary collaboration.

The long and winding road: Pathways from basic research to implementation and evaluation

In this article, we celebrate Dante Cicchetti's extensive contributions to the discipline of developmental psychopathology. In his seminal article, he articulated why developmental psychopathology was imperative to create research portfolios that could inform the causes, consequences, and trajectories for adults often initiated by early lived experiences (Cicchetti, 1984). In this three-part article, we share our transdisciplinary efforts to use developmental psychopathology as a foundational theory from which to develop, implement, and evaluate interventions for populations who experienced early adversity or who were at risk for child abuse and neglect. After describing interventions conducted at Mt. Hope Family Center that spanned over three decades, we highlight the criticality of disseminating results and address policy implications of this work. We conclude by discussing future directions to facilitate work in developmental psychopathology. Currently, one of three national National Institute of Child Health and Human Development-funded child abuse and neglect centers, we look forward to continuing to build upon Dante's efforts to disseminate this important work to improve society for our children, our nation's often most vulnerable and forgotten citizens.

Scoping review of practice-focused resources to support the implementation of place-based approaches

ISSUE ADDRESSED

There is increasing interest across public health research, policy, and practice in place-based approaches to improve health outcomes. Practice-focused resources, such as grey literature, courses and websites, are utilised by practitioners to support the implementation of place-based approaches.

METHODS

A detailed search of two search engines: Google and DuckDuckGo to identify free practice-focused resources was conducted.

RESULTS

Forty-one resources met inclusion criteria, including 26 publications, 13 web-based resources and two courses. They were mainly focused on collaboration, developed by not-for-profit organisations, focused on a broad target audience, and supported people living with disadvantage. The publications we reviewed generally: clearly stated important information, such as the author of the publication; used their own evaluations, professional experience and other grey literature as supporting evidence; included specific, practical implementation strategies; and were easy to read.

CONCLUSIONS

Based on findings, we recommend that: (1) the development of resources to support evidence-informed practice and governance be prioritised; (2) resources clearly state their target audience and tailor communication to this audience; (3) resources draw on evidence from a range of sources; (4) resources continue to include practical implementation strategies supported by examples and (5) resource content be adaptable to different contexts (e.g., different settings and/or target populations). SO WHAT?: This is the first review of practice-focused resources to support the implementation of place-based approaches and the findings can be used to reduce duplication of efforts and inform future research, policy, and practice, particularly the refinement of existing resources and the development of future resources.

Transdisciplinary science and the importance of Indigenous knowledge

As we move ever closer to the brink of global environmental collapse, it is vital that we work collaboratively and collectively as global, national, and local communities to design multiscale change. Protecting future generations and reversing (or substantively slowing) the current trends require rapid sustainable progress at the required scale. It is more urgent than ever that we understand and more fully realize the power of transdisciplinary (Td) research to support sustainable practice. A defining factor of Td is the focus on collaboration and codesign and the extent that participation and attention to local context is integral to the knowledge building. Specifically, there is greater ability for community knowledge, values, and aspirations to influence and shape research inquiries to effect meaningful change in real-world decision-making and outcomes. Business-as-usual (BAU) approaches that perpetuate unequal knowledge sharing and dismiss other forms of knowledge beyond traditional science no longer suffice. Transdisciplinary approaches seek to achieve and support sustainable change, but the extent of transformation required to meet ecological protection and regenerative sustainability requires very different operating models for knowing and doing science than the limited traditions of positivist science. However, these powerful defaults and operating paradigms are more deeply ingrained than we might realize, and so challenges persist. This article illustrates how Td science differs from typical research paradigms, particularly in terms of the underlying epistemology; the focus on knowledge and/or power; attention to boundaries and scope; and the degree to which local knowledge, context, and community participation underpin the research process. Active conversations are required to better identify and overcome fundamental challenges for science and Td research approaches to support the necessary transformational change. Importantly, we suggest that Indigenous partnerships, knowledge, and values are vital in achieving the potential of Td research to provide transformational interventions to address complex social and environmental issues such as pollution. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2024;20:805-816. © 2023 SETAC.

Mobilizing knowledge about urban change for equity and sustainability: developing 'Change Stories', a multi-country transdisciplinary study

Background

Health-focused research funders increasingly support multi-country research partnerships that study health, urban development and equity in global settings. To develop new knowledge that benefits society, these grants require researchers to integrate diverse knowledges and data, and to manage research-related aspects of coloniality, such as power imbalances and epistemic injustices. We conducted research to develop a transdisciplinary study proposal with partners in multiple middle and high income countries, aiming to embed equity into the methodology and funding model.

Methods

Parallel to literature review, we used participatory and social research methods to identify case study cities for our primary study and to inform our study design. We conducted semi-structured interviews with informed and consented sustainable urban development experts in the USA (n=23). We co-developed our research approach with our global advisory group (n=14) and conducted a participatory workshop (n=30) to identify case study sites, also informed by conversations with international academic experts in sustainable development (n=27).

Results

Through literature review we found that there is a need to study the contextual pre-conditions of urban transformation, the influence of coloniality on understandings of how cities can change and the failure of standard development practices to meet the needs of all residents and the planet. Through expert input and literature we found that decolonial and storytelling methods may help us show the complexities behind stories of urban transformation, particularly the role of marginalized populations in creating long-term change.

Conclusions

There are multiple benefits of conducting research to develop an equitably designed multi-country research collaboration. We built new partnerships and co-developed our research approach, creating new understanding of diverse collaborators' disciplinary perspectives and institutional requirements. By investigating the informational needs of U.S. sustainable development actors and designing our study to meet these needs, we have increased the likelihood that our research will create impact.

Co-producing knowledge on the use of urban natural space: Participatory system dynamics modelling to understand a complex urban system

Decision-makers are increasingly asked to act differently in how they respond to complex urban challenges, recognising the value in bringing together and integrating cross-disciplinary, cross-sectoral knowledge to generate effective solutions. Participatory modelling allows to bring stakeholders together, enhance knowledge and understanding of a system, and identify the impacts of interventions to a given problem. This paper uses an interdisciplinary and systems approach to investigate a complex urban problem, using a participatory System Dynamics modelling process as an approach to facilitate learning and co-produce knowledge on the factors influencing the use of urban natural space. Stakeholders used a Systems Dynamics model and interface, as a tool to collectively identify pathways for improving the use of space and simulating their impacts. Under the lens of knowledge co-production, the paper reflects how such mechanisms can lead to the co-production of knowledge and social learning. The findings also contribute to identify ways of increasing the value of urban natural space focusing on urban areas undergoing physical and social transformation, such as the Thamesmead case study, London, UK.

Kaleidoscopic integration: Advancing the integration of incommensurable knowledge in healthcare guidelines

The integration of different types of knowledge in epistemically hierarchical settings remains one of the greatest challenges when developing standards for healthcare practices. In this article, we open up the notion of knowledge integration and empirically examine the various ways in which different types of knowledge interact and can be integrated. To allow us to focus on the diverse forms of knowledge as well as their interaction and integration, we combine Moreira's work on repertoires of evaluation with that of Dewulf and Bouwen on frame interactions. We examine the quest for knowledge integration by studying interactions in the case of the development of the COVID-19 vaccination guideline in the Netherlands, a prime example of the encounter of a wide range and diversity of knowledge that needs to be appraised and integrated into guideline recommendations. Drawing on ethnographic observations of more than 70 guideline development meetings between 2021 and 2022, we first map the different types of knowledge and reasonings used by the guideline developers and subsequently analyze their interactions. We identified eight knowledge interaction patterns, being disconnection, polarization, accommodation, incorporation, reconnection, reconciliation, passive juxtaposition, and kaleidoscopic integration. We hereby draw attention to the various possible knowledge interactions encompassed in the concept of "knowledge integration", especially to those in which integration is achieved while differences and incompatibilities are maintained. Finally, we discuss potential ways to facilitate fruitful knowledge interactions during collaborative work which include the ability to accept and sustain tensions between different types of knowledge and making more explicit use of frame or rather repertoire reflection.

Emerging biological archives can reveal ecological and climatic change in Antarctica

Anthropogenic climate change is causing observable changes in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean including increased air and ocean temperatures, glacial melt leading to sea-level rise and a reduction in salinity, and changes to freshwater water availability on land. These changes impact local Antarctic ecosystems and the Earth's climate system. The Antarctic has experienced significant past environmental change, including cycles of glaciation over the Quaternary Period (the past ~2.6 million years). Understanding Antarctica's paleoecosystems, and the corresponding paleoenvironments and climates that have shaped them, provides insight into present day ecosystem change, and importantly, helps constrain model projections of future change. Biological archives such as extant moss beds and peat profiles, biological proxies in lake and marine sediments, vertebrate animal colonies, and extant terrestrial and benthic marine invertebrates, complement other Antarctic paleoclimate archives by recording the nature and rate of past ecological change, the paleoenvironmental drivers of that change, and constrain current ecosystem and climate models. These archives provide invaluable information about terrestrial ice-free areas, a key location for Antarctic biodiversity, and the continental margin which is important for understanding ice sheet dynamics. Recent significant advances in analytical techniques (e.g., genomics, biogeochemical analyses) have led to new applications and greater power in elucidating the environmental records contained within biological archives. Paleoecological and paleoclimate discoveries derived from biological archives, and integration with existing data from other paleoclimate data sources, will significantly expand our understanding of past, present, and future ecological change, alongside climate change, in a unique, globally significant region.

Prestatiedruk en schoolstress bekeken vanuit verschillende perspectieven

Jongeren ervaren de laatste jaren steeds meer schoolstress en druk door school. Om goed inzicht te krijgen in de factoren die ten grondslag liggen aan deze toename en mogelijk een schakel zijn voor verandering, is het van belang om dit maatschappelijke probleem vanuit verschillende perspectieven te bekijken. In dit onderzoek verbinden we wetenschappelijke kennis (systematisch literatuuronderzoek) met praktijk- en ervaringskennis van professionals, beleidsmedewerkers, ouders en jongeren (diepte-interviews, n = 60). De resultaten van dit onderzoek laten zien dat de beschermende factoren op verschillende niveaus (systeem, directe omgeving, individu) met elkaar interacteren. De maatschappij legt veel nadruk op resultaat en prestaties, wat invloed heeft op de verwachtingen van jongeren en ouders, en de inrichting van ons onderwijssysteem. Scholen kunnen jongeren ondersteunen bij hun ontwikkeling door aandacht te besteden aan bredere talentontwikkeling, alternatieve beoordelingsvormen, goed mentorschap en de sociaal-emotionele ontwikkeling. Om de ervaren schoolstress en druk door school te verminderen is het belangrijk om niet alleen het individu weerbaarder te maken, maar ook de directe omgeving en de school/maatschappij mee te nemen in preventieve maatregelen om schoolstress en ervaren druk te minderen.

Physical Activity Impacts of an Activity-Friendly Community: A Natural Experiment Study Protocol

Background

Stakeholders from multiple sectors are increasingly aware of the critical need for identifying sustainable interventions that promote healthy lifestyle behaviors. Activity-friendly communities (AFCs) have been known to provide opportunities for engaging in physical activity (PA) across the life course, which is a key to healthy living and healthy aging.

Purpose

Our purpose is to describe the study protocol developed for a research project that examines: (a) the short- and long-term changes in total levels and spatial and temporal patterns of PA after individuals move from non-AFCs to an AFC; and (b) what built and natural environmental factors lead to changes in PA resulting from such a move, either directly or indirectly (e.g., by affecting psychosocial factors related to PA).

Methods

This protocol is for a longitudinal, case-comparison study utilizing a unique natural experiment opportunity in Austin, Texas, USA. Case participants were those adults who moved from non-AFCs to an AFC. Matching comparison participants were residents from similar non-AFCs who did not move during the study period. Recruitment venues included local businesses, social and print media, community events, and individual referrals. Objectively measured moderate-to-vigorous PA and associated spatial and temporal patterns served as the key outcomes of interest. Independent (e.g., physical environments), confounding (e.g., demographic factors), and mediating variables (e.g., psychosocial factors) were captured using a combination of objective (e.g., GIS, GPS, Tanita scale) and subjective measures (e.g., survey, travel diary). Statistical analyses will be conducted using multiple methods, including difference-in-differences models, repeated-measures linear mixed models, hierarchical marked space-time Poisson point pattern analysis, and hierarchical linear mixed models.

Conclusion

Natural experiment studies help investigate causal relationships between health and place. However, multiple challenges associated with participant recruitment, extensive and extended data collection activities, and unpredictable intervention schedules have discouraged many researchers from implementing such studies in community-based populations. This detailed study protocol will inform the execution of future studies to explore how AFCs impact population health across the life course.

Everyday information behavior during the “new normal” of the Covid-19 pandemic: approaching the notions of experiential and local knowledge

Purpose

The purpose of this research is to understand everyday information behavior (IB) during the Covid-19 pandemic at the “new normal” stage, focusing on the notions of experiential knowledge (EK), i.e. knowledge acquired by first-hand experience or in personal interactions, and local knowledge (LK) as perception of local environment.

Design/methodology/approach

Seventeen interviews were carried out in February–May 2021, in a district of the city of Madrid (Spain). Interview transcripts were analyzed according to grounded theory, to identify major and complementary themes of EK and LK.

Findings

Participants’ stories show that EK cooperated with information originating from government, scientific authorities and mainstream media, in patterns of convergence and divergence. While convergence produces “thick knowledge” (knowledge perceived as solid, real and multidimensional), divergence leads to uncertainty and collaboration, but it also supports a critical stance on authorities’ information. In addition, participants’ perceptions of LK emphasize its human component. LK and EK are exchanged both explicitly and tacitly.

Originality/value

The paper presents the first approach to understanding EK and LK and their function during the health crisis, characterizing them as alternative information systems and as topics deserving major attention in research on IB and crisis management.

Interdisciplinary Research: An Important Contribution to Dementia Care

Authorities and research institutions emphasise and encourage interdisciplinary research to meet complex societal health challenges as dementia. However, studies that describe an interdisciplinary approach for dementia research are limited. What does it take for research to become interdisciplinary? Is it enough to include researchers from different disciplines? This paper reflects on an interdisciplinary approach to dementia research. Based on existing literature and theories, we elaborate the concept of interdisciplinarity, and how the perspective can contribute and improve dementia care.

The CUSSH programme: supporting cities' transformational change towards health and sustainability

This paper describes a global research programme on the complex systemic connections between urban development and health. Through transdisciplinary methods the Complex Urban Systems for Sustainability and Health (CUSSH) project will develop critical evidence on how to achieve the far-reaching transformation of cities needed to address vital environmental imperatives for planetary health in the 21st Century. CUSSH’s core components include: (i) a review of evidence on the effects of climate actions (both mitigation and adaptation) and factors influencing their implementation in urban settings; (ii) the development and application of methods for tracking the progress of cities towards sustainability and health goals; (iii) the development and application of models to assess the impact on population health, health inequalities, socio-economic development and environmental parameters of urban development strategies, in order to support policy decisions; (iv) iterative in-depth engagements with stakeholders in partner cities in low-, middle- and high-income settings, using systems-based participatory methods, to test and support the implementation of the transformative changes needed to meet local and global health and sustainability objectives; (v) a programme of public engagement and capacity building. Through these steps, the programme will provide transferable evidence on how to accelerate actions essential to achieving population-level health and global climate goals through, amongst others, changing cities’ energy provision, transport infrastructure, green infrastructure, air quality, waste management and housing.

Evaluating the Evolution of Social Networks: A Ten-Year Longitudinal Analysis of an Agricultural, Fishing and Forestry Occupational Health Research Center

As part of our evaluation of the NIOSH-funded Northeast Center for Occupational Health and Safety: Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (NEC), we present methodology, findings and the potential implications of a sequential social network analysis (SNA) conducted over ten years. Assessing the effectiveness of the center's scientific projects was our overarching evaluation goal. The evaluation design employed SNA to (a) look at changes to the center's network over time by visualizing relationships between center collaborators annually, (b) document collaborative ties and (c) identify particularly strong or weak areas of the network. Transdisciplinary social network criteria were applied to the SNA to examine the collaboration between center personnel, their partners and the industry groups they serve. SNA participants' perspectives on the utility of the SNA were also summarized to assess their interest in ongoing SNA measures. Annual installments of the SNA (2011-2020) showed an expansion of the network with a 30% increase in membership from baseline, as well as an increase in total relational ties (any type of contact). SNA measures also indicated significant increases in co-publication, cross-sector and transdisciplinary ties. Overall, SNA is an effective tool in visualizing and sustaining an occupational safety and health research and outreach network. Its utility is limited by how ties are characterized, grant cycle timeframes and how SNA metrics relate to productivity.

Interorganizational Networks in Physical Activity Promotion: A Systematic Review

Public health challenges such as physical inactivity are multiplex and cannot be effectively addressed by single organizations or sectors. For this reason, public health policies have to involve various sectors and foster partnerships among organizations. Social network analysis (SNA) provides a methodological toolkit that enables the investigation of relationships between organizations to reveal information about the structure and cooperation within networks. This systematic review provides an overview of studies utilizing SNA to analyze the structure of networks that promote physical activity, including the structural set-up, types, and conditions of cooperation, the existence or absence of key actors, the characteristics of organizations working together, and potential barriers limiting collaboration. In total, eight eligible studies were identified. To evaluate the quality of these studies, a quality assessment tool for SNA was created. Relevant aspects from each study were systematically outlined using a data extraction template developed for network studies. The studies reported low to moderate density scores with many ties not being realized. Organizations tend to work side by side than as real partners, whereas organizations of the same type are more strongly connected. Most of the studies identified governmental health organizations as key players in their networks. Network maturity influences network outcomes. Shared goals and geographic proximity are potential facilitators for network development. For future research, more sophisticated methods and longitudinal studies are required to describe how networks, with the aim of promoting physical activity, develop and change to identify predicting factors for an effective network structure.

Evidence-informed urban health and sustainability governance in two Chinese cities

Sustainable development is best supported by intersectoral policies informed by a range of evidence and knowledge types (e.g. scientific and lay). Given China's rapid urbanisation, scale and global importance in climate mitigation, this study investigates how evidence is perceived and used to inform urban health and sustainability policies at central and local levels. Well-informed senior professionals in government/scientific agencies (12 in Beijing and 11 in Ningbo) were interviewed. A thematic analysis is presented using deductive and inductive coding. Government agency participants described formal remits and processes determining the scope and use of evidence by different tiers of government. Academic evidence was influential when commissioned by government departments. Public opinion and economic priorities were two factors that also influenced the use or weight of evidence in policymaking. This study shows that scientific evidence produced or commissioned by government was routinely used to inform urban health and sustainability policy. Extensive and routine data collection is regularly used to inform cyclical policy processes, which improves adaptive capacity. This study contributes to knowledge on the 'cultures of evidence use'. Environmental governance can be further improved through increased data-sharing and use of diverse knowledge types.

The CUSSH programme: learning how to support cities’ transformational change towards health and sustainability

The Complex Urban Systems for Sustainability and Health (CUSSH) project is a global research programme on the complex systemic connections between urban development and health. Through transdisciplinary methods it will develop critical evidence on how to achieve the far-reaching transformation of cities needed to address vital environmental imperatives for planetary health in the 21st century. CUSSH’s core components include: (i) a review of evidence on the effects of climate actions (both mitigation and adaptation) and factors influencing their implementation in urban settings; (ii) the development and application of methods for tracking the progress of cities towards sustainability and health goals; (iii) the development and application of models to assess the impact on population health, health inequalities, socio-economic development and environmental parameters of urban development strategies, in order to support policy decisions; (iv) iterative in-depth engagements with stakeholders in partner cities in low-, middle- and high-income settings, using systems-based participatory methods, to test and support the implementation of the transformative changes needed to meet local and global health and sustainability objectives; (v) a programme of public engagement and capacity building. Through these steps, the programme will provide transferable evidence on how to accelerate actions essential to achieving population-level health and global climate goals through, amongst others, changing cities’ energy provision, transport infrastructure, green infrastructure, air quality, waste management and housing.