Research: Multi/Trans/Cross-disciplinarity

Multidisciplinarity

Multidisciplinarity examines multiple subjects from different disciplines but only uses the methods of one discipline in its examination. This approach is related to the think tank model, where the objective is likely to be the solution of an immediate problem, rather than exploration of disciplinary perspectives.

Transdisciplinarity

A transdisciplinary approach dissolves boundaries between disciplines. Transdisciplinarity becomes necessary when the concept or method cannot be understood from within a single discipline and requires the input of many disciplines to be understood. An example is the field research method called ethnography, which was originally developed in anthropology but is now more fully understood with insights from psychology, philosophy, sociology, and other disciplines.

Crossdisciplinarity

This describes a method that crosses disciplinary boundaries but does so from a foreign angle and with no cooperation. Basically, crossdisciplinary approaches attempt to explain a subject in the terms of a foreign method. Some good examples of such interaction would be describing the physics of music or the politics of literature.