CoLab

About Us

The CoLaboratory (a.k.a. "CoLab") is an interdisciplinary group of scholars working together to study collaboration and knowledge flow across disciplines. We examine how collaborations start, what challenges arise, how collaborators address those challenges, and the benefits of these experiences. 

Our goal is to offer actionable advice for improving collaborative processes and outcomes, and for fostering meaningful interactions among people with diverse perspectives.

Current Projects

Engaging Science with Philosophy: Best Practices for Fostering Effective Collaboration 

  • Funded by a SSHRC Insight Grant, 2020-26

Motivation: The overarching aim of this project is to foster meaningful collaborations between philosophers of science and researchers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). A previous CoLab project examined the barriers to and strategies for increasing the impact of philosophy of science in scientific domains. While that project focused on the perspectives of philosophers, this one explores philosopher-STEM collaborations from the perspectives of STEM researchers themselves.

Aims: This project has two main goals: (1) understand scientists’ and engineers’ views, attitudes, and experiences with respect to philosophy of science, and its relevance to scientific work, and (2) develop an online toolkit that can foster productive engagement between philosophers of science, on the one hand, and scientists and engineers, on the other.  

Methods: We are using a mixed methods approach, including interviews with scientists and engineers who have collaborated with philosophers of science, and a large-scale survey of scientists and engineers across Canada and the U.S. regarding their views about interdisciplinary collaboration.

Project Team: Kathryn Plaisance (PI), Sara Doody, Aaron McCright, Chad Gonnerman, Candice Hubley, Pierson Browne

 

Past Projects

Increasing the Impact of Philosophy of Science in Scientific Domains 

  • Funded by a SSHRC Insight Development Grant (2016-19)

Motivation & aims: Much of the work done by philosophers of science is relevant to scientists, engineers, science policymakers, and even lay publics, yet philosophy’s disciplinary norms and incentive structures often create barriers for philosophers who wish to engage with others outside the discipline. While many philosophers are aware of these barriers, we lack empirical data about how they function and how philosophers have been able to overcome them. This project used empirical methods to better understand these barriers, how philosophers might overcome them, and the pathways through which philosophers have had an impact in science-related domains. 

Methods & findings: Our project included three phases – bibliometric analysis, surveys, and interviews.

  • Phase 1: Bibliometric Analysis. We examined citation patterns for publications written by philosophers of science, looking at which fields tended to cite philosophical work published in philosophy journals vs. philosophical work published in science journals. In short, we found evidence of disciplinary siloing, where uptake of philosophical work in scientific domains was predominantly based on work published in science journals, and vice versa. (For published results, see McLevey et al. 2018.)

  • Phase 2: Survey of philosophers of science. We conducted a survey of 299 philosophers of science regarding their attitudes, experiences, and values with respect to doing broadly engaged work. Our results demonstrate the majority of philosophers of science think it is important for non-philosophers to read and make use of their work and that philosophy as a discipline, has an obligation to ensure it has a broader impact. Moreover, many philosophers of science have already been engaging with communities outside the discipline. (For published results, see Plaisance et al. 2019.)

  • Phase 3: Interviews with philosophers of science. To better understand philosophers' particular experiences, we interviewed 35 philosophers of science regarding their interactions with scientists and other scholars outside philosophy. One of our main findings is that face-to-face engagement with scientists and other stakeholders is one of the most – if not the most – effective pathways to impact. However, since direct engagement is not aligned with the activities that tend to be encouraged and rewarded in philosophy, we describe strategies for navigating this tension, both at the individual and collective levels. (For published results, see Plaisance et al. 2021.)

Next steps: We are currently building on this project by conducting interviews with scientists and engineers who have experience engaging with philosophers, as well as a large-scale survey with scientists and engineers across Canada and the U.S. For more about this project, see above.

Project team: Kathryn Plaisance (PI), John McLevey, Alexander Graham, Janet Michaud