Tensions and opportunities for cross-disciplinary collaboration in smart city work

Abstract

Smart and sustainable cities entail inherent complexity, spanning various issue domains from resilience and sustainability to quality of life and social equity, bringing together multiple subjects and disciplines. This chapter elaborates on the meaning of cross-disciplinary research, which has become increasingly recognized as vital for tackling a growing number of contemporary societal issues. Nonetheless, work across disciplines remains challenging due to philosophical, conceptual, and skill differences but also collaboration. Therefore, understanding barriers to working across disciplines and issue domains is crucial. The study draws on a focus mapping literature review, addressing challenges of cross-disciplinarity, and on three interviews, respectively with two early-/mid-career scholars and the head of the University of Stavanger, and explores the research questions: What are the challenges entailed with cross-disciplinary research? How may these challenges be overcome with special regard to early-career researchers and to the smart city? The analysis identified common themes and obstacles encountered by novice researchers. The findings highlight challenges for early- and mid-career researchers in entering fields of various kinds of cross-disciplinary collaboration. The chapter advocates for the creation of more inclusive and supportive academic environments for early- and mid-career professionals and highlights ways of approaching this goal in the smart city.