In a recent interview conducted with Jose Pina–Sánchez, a Professor in Quantitative Criminology at the University of Leeds, we discussed his approach to nurturing a healthy research culture. He offered us insights into his efforts to create an increasingly collaborative research culture at Leeds, focussing on his work as Co-director of the Social Research Method Centre.
A core theme that Professor Pina-Sánchez discussed was the importance of cross-disciplinary collaboration. He highlighted the inherent tendency in academia for researchers to operate within their own bubbles, often confined to the narrow niches within their own disciplines. He then expanded, explaining that this insular approach often stifles innovation and originality. The creation of the Social Research Method Centre at the University of Leeds aims to counteract this trend.
The Social Research Method Centre aims to connect researchers and empower individuals to share their expertise in methodologies that they have used for their research. Most likely, we have all fallen victim to imposter syndrome and we don’t see ourselves as experts of our chosen fields. Jose explained, however, that the skills and methodologies employed by individual researchers to obtain cutting-edge research are valuable knowledge that should be shared, even if they do not seem that innovative to them. That is because often the bread-and-butter methodology in one discipline is a completely underappreciated or even unknown methodology in other disciplines. The centre includes a range of researchers from different schools, creating a hub where they can share what types of research methods they have been using. The centre then allows for researchers eager to learn about new research methods to connect to the experts. It aims to provide a simple and easy way for researchers to connect across disciplines.
He has found in the past that it is relatively easy to connect with people within your own school, but a challenge to expand the circle any further. His database of colleagues who have signed themselves up to the Social Research Method Centre has grown since its creation, with a range of experts of skills and methodologies such as qualitative interviewing to participant recruitment to casual analysis. He confirmed there has been a positive response to its creation and it now fosters an extensive list of researchers as part of the Find the Expert feature. The centre assists in researchers being able to connect and break the disciplinary cycles Professor Pina-Sánchez felt hindered his research in the past.
Following Professor Pina-Sánchez’s efforts to increase collaboration within his faculty, he also believes there needs to be a sense of community and support to facilitate a healthy research culture. At Leeds, Jose has taken part in creating a network just for PhD students, where the allocated budget is controlled by the students; allowing them a sense of ownership of the network. A sense of community is vital for a healthy research culture. Benefits include the higher mental well-being of students who feel like they have a space they belong and can confide in. He hopes that with the increased sense of community, students can see challenges other students are coming across and hopefully reduces the feeling of solitude that often is paired with academic or personal struggles.
Overall, our conversation with Professor Jose Pina-Sánchez concluded that his approach to cultivating a healthy research culture focuses heavily on collaboration and community. Both are important aspects of research culture that should be celebrated, not only because of the contribution they give to creating excellent research but for the positive impact they have on researchers individually.