519-888-4567, ext. 48612
kathryn.plaisance@uwaterloo.ca
ki.ug.associatechair@uwaterloo.ca
Environment 1, room 214
Katie Plaisance's research website
Katie Plaisance's scholar website
Katie received her BSc in Philosophy and Molecular Biology from the University of Wisconsin in 2000, followed by a PhD in Philosophy from the University of Minnesota in 2006. She also worked as a postdoctoral fellow in the Center for Philosophy and Ethics of Science at the Leibniz University of Hannover in Germany before joining the Knowledge Integration program in 2009.
Katie’s teaching and research are highly interdisciplinary, combining her interests in philosophy, biology, psychology, and other fields to integrate knowledge and equip others with the capacity to work effectively in diverse teams. Her research interests include: engaged philosophy of science, philosophy of the behavioural sciences, and interdisciplinary expertise. Katie’s work is highly collaborative – she has published with students and faculty across a wide range of disciplines.
Katie is currently leading a 5-year SSHRC-funded project on ‘Engaging Science with Philosophy’ that seeks to foster meaningful collaboration between philosophers and scientists. Her research team uses quantitative and qualitative methods to provide empirical insights into cross-disciplinary collaboration and develop data-driven interventions. She also serves as Waterloo’s lead for a $2.5 million SSHRC Partnership Grant on ‘Experiential Learning Toolkits to Increase Social Sciences, Humanities, and Arts (SSHA) Capacity for Research and Innovation in the Social Sector'.
Katie teaches INTEG 120: The Art and Science of Learning, INTEG 220: Nature of Scientific Knowledge, INTEG 221: The Social Nature of Knowledge, and INTEG 210 : Making Collaboration Work. She also offers special topics courses, including INTEG 410: Interdisciplinary Collaboration and INTEG 475: Socially Relevant Philosophy of Science.
She has been recognized for her teaching excellence and dedication with the honour of the University of Waterloo Distinguished Teacher Award in 2016, the 2020-2021 Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) Teaching Award, and the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA) Teaching Excellence Award, 2022.
Research Interests
- Philosophy of science
- Philosophy of the human behavioural sciences
- Socially relevant philosophy of science
- Social epistemology
- Interactional expertise
- Interdisciplinary collaboration