Form 1 IDRWG Investigator Survey

OMB #0925-xxxx, Expiration date xx/xxxx

Investigator Survey: Introduction

The National Institutes of Health is working with Abt Associates to evaluate the Interdisciplinary Research Consortium Program. The results of this evaluation will be used to make recommendations to NIH regarding the program. A survey of investigators participating in the Program is one component of the evaluation.

You have been identified as an Investigator of an NIH grant associated with the NIH Interdisciplinary Research Consortium Program. The following questions ask you about your recent professional experiences and about your Consortium. We expect the survey to require about 30 minutes of your time.

Privacy and Participation

Participation in this survey is voluntary and nonparticipation will have no impact on you or your institution. The information you provide will be kept secure to the extent permitted by law, and will not be disclosed to anyone but the researchers conducting this study, except as otherwise required by law. You will not be identified by name, and information from the study will only be reported in the aggregate. Your responses will be combined with those of approximately 150 other respondents in the final report. There is minimal risk of breach of privacy, and we have put in place procedures in place to minimize this risk.

If you have any questions or concerns about the project, you may call Alina Martinez at at 617-349-2312. If you have questions about your rights as a research participant, you may contact Teresa Doksum, the Abt Institutional Review Board Administrator at 617-349- 2896.. These may be toll calls.

Burden Disclosure Statement

Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 30 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to: NIH, Project Clearance Branch, 6705 Rockledge Drive, MSC 7974, Bethesda, MD 20892-7974, ATTN: PRA (0925-XXXX). Do not return completed forms to this address.

Consent

Press enter to continue with the survey if you agree to participate.

Your Role in the Consortium

1. What is your primary role in the Consortium:

	Principal or Co-principal investigator for an R01 award	1
	Principal or Co-principal investigator for a non- R01 award	1
	Investigator	1
	Fellow or post-doctoral trainee	1
	Staff	1
	Other ______________________________________	1

Experiences in your Consortium

2. Indicate your agreement or disagreement with each of the following statements about your Interdisciplinary Research Consortium, based on your experiences in the last 6 months:

		Strongly Disagree	Disagree	Neutral	Agree	Strongly Agree
	Our investigators were committed to interdisciplinary collaboration	1	2	3	4	5
	Communication structures and processes facilitated interdisciplinary collaboration	1	2	3	4	5
	Physical proximity of members' offices or labs facilitated collaboration	1	2	3	4	5
	Electronic connectivity of members' offices or labs facilitated collaboration	1	2	3	4	5
	The consortium leadership facilitated collaboration	1	2	3	4	5
	The complementary research interests and expertise in participating laboratories facilitated collaboration	1	2	3	4	5
	Investigators were exposed to divergent points of view that positively affected thinking or research	1	2	3	4	5
	Intellectual contributions made by more than one investigator were valued	1	2	3	4	5
	Investigators used cross-disciplinary analogies to communicate ideas or generate solutions to scientific challenges	1	2	3	4	5
	Unexpected findings served as a source for new ideas and new directions for research	1	2	3	4	5
	Work on high risk, high reward projects was encouraged	1	2	3	4	5
	The consortium environment was collaborative rather than competitive	1	2	3	4	5

3. Indicate your agreement or disagreement with each statement about your Interdisciplinary Research Consortium U54 Principal Investigator(s), based on your experiences in the last 6 months.

	Our U54 PI(s) were successful in …	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neutral	Agree	Strongly agree
	Generating and sustaining trust	1	2	3	4	5
	Cultivating a shared vision	1	2	3	4	5
	Supporting innovative projects	1	2	3	4	5
	Distributing resources equitably	1	2	3	4	5
	Making financial management transparent	1	2	3	4	5
	Resolving conflicts	1	2	3	4	5
	Setting goals through team participation	1	2	3	4	5
	Providing adequate feedback and communication	1	2	3	4	5
	Structuring interdependence of members' tasks	1	2	3	4	5
	Structuring interdependence of members' rewards	1	2	3	4	5

4. Please indicate how frequently you engaged in the following activities within the last six months, first within your primary discipline (left columns) and then outside your primary discipline (right columns).

Within your primary discipline							Outside your primary discipline
Not at all				Daily			Not at all				Daily
1	2	3	4	5		Worked on research projects with other individuals	1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5		Co-authored research proposals with other individuals	1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5		Co-authored research articles or books with other individuals	1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5		Published research findings in a journal	1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5		Attended scientific meetings or conferences	1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5		Presented research findings at a scientific conference	1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5		Mentored graduate student(s)	1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5		Read science journals or publications	1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5		Participated in working groups or committees	1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5		Were ready to collaborate with other investigators	1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5		Obtained new insight into your research through discussions with colleagues	1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5		Established links with colleagues that led to or may lead to collaborative studies	1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5		Designed a new collaborative study with colleagues	1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5		Developed new curricula	1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5		Team taught courses with other faculty	1	2	3	4	5

5. Indicate your agreement or disagreement with each statement, based on your experiences in the last 6 months.

		Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neutral	Agree	Strongly agree
	The costs and inconveniences of interdisciplinary scientific collaboration outweigh the benefits of such work.	1	2	3	4	5
	Interdisciplinary research is very difficult to conduct.	1	2	3	4	5
	Interdisciplinary research is a better way to explore a biomedical problem than single discipline research.	1	2	3	4	5
	I tend to be more productive working on my own research projects than working as a member of a collaborative research team.	1	2	3	4	5
	Interdisciplinary research interferes with my ability to maintain and expand knowledge in my primary area.	1	2	3	4	5
	Interdisciplinary research exposes me to new scientific approaches and paradigms.	1	2	3	4	5
	Interdisciplinary research has improved my conduct of research.	1	2	3	4	5
	I am optimistic that interdisciplinary research will lead to valuable scientific outcomes that would not have occurred without that kind of collaboration.	1	2	3	4	5
	The research questions I am interested in generally do not warrant collaboration from other disciplines	1	2	3	4	5
	Interdisciplinary research often leads to valuable scientific outcomes that would not have occurred through a single discipline approach.	1	2	3	4	5
	Interdisciplinary training increases the likelihood that trainees will conduct research that will be translated into practice to benefit society.	1	2	3	4	5

6. Indicate your agreement or disagreement with each statement, based on your experiences in the last 6 months.

		Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree	Agree	Strongly agree
	Team members provided practical support for new ideas and their application	1	2	3	4	5
	The team had clear criteria that members try to meet to achieve excellence as a team	1	2	3	4	5
	Members of the team met frequently for formal and informal discussions	1	2	3	4	5
	There was real concern among team members that the team should achieve the highest standards of performance	1	2	3	4	5
	Members of the team cooperated to achieve the best possible outcome	1	2	3	4	5
	Members of the team built on each other's ideas to achieve the best possible outcome	1	2	3	4	5
	The team took the time it needed to develop new ideas	1	2	3	4	5
	The team critically appraised potential weaknesses in what it is doing	1	2	3	4	5
	Team members kept in regular contact with each other	1	2	3	4	5
	Members of the team searched for fresh, new ways of looking at problems	1	2	3	4	5
	Team members were prepared to question the basis of what the team is doing	1	2	3	4	5
	The team was open and responsive to change	1	2	3	4	5
	Team members monitored each other to maintain a higher standard of work	1	2	3	4	5
	Assistance from the team in developing new ideas was readily available	1	2	3	4	5
	Team members provided useful ideas and practical help to enable members to do their jobs to the best of their ability	1	2	3	4	5
	The team was always moving toward the development of new answers	1	2	3	4	5

6. Please indicate how often you interacted with Consortium members during the last 6 months. On the left, indicate the frequency of all interactions. On the right, indicate the frequency of interactions devoted to Consortium research, such as meetings of project teams, workgroups, or committees or data collection activities.

All interactions							Interactions devoted to Consortium Research
Not at all				Daily		Consortium member	Not at all				Daily
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5
1	2	3	4	5			1	2	3	4	5

7. If there is anything else you would like to tell us about the Consortium, please use the space below.

     

Thank you for completing this survey

9