Collaborative research teams

The basic definition of a research team is a group of people expert in their domain working toward a shared goal by contributing their individual strengths and talents to explore and innovate in ways none could do individually. In this context, research teams have several things in common, regardless of the subject matter of the project they are working on.

First, they share a common goal: they will have come together on a topic of shared interest, formulated a research project around a hypothesis, developed specific aims and objectives, and are seeking to or have obtained funding to pursue the research question.

Second, there is usually a hierarchy in the team that is made explicit and respected by all members. Often, each research team has one principal investigator (PI) or more who leads the project and coordinates the collaborative effort. Some PIs may choose an egalitarian system while others preserve this hierarchy. We explore leadership approaches and their impact on the success of the team in later chapters. Suffice it to say here that this respected hierarchy in research teams often plays a role in the responsibilities that team members have, and it follows academic norms that have been in place for centuries. Both egalitarian and hierarchical approaches can be highly effective. Success rests in large part on how well the team structures and processes are executed.

Third, research teams have a culture that is unique to them and is a mix of the many overlapping cultures represented in that team.