Interdisciplinary Research Funding: Reaching Outside the Boundaries of Kinesiology

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1 Quest, 2009, 61, American Academy of Kinesiology and Physical Education Interdisciplinary Research Funding: Reaching Outside the Boundaries of Kinesiology Patty Freedson Interdisciplinary research requires that experts from multiple disciplines work together to combine methods and ideas in an integrative fashion to generate new knowledge. In many respects, the field of kinesiology is ideally positioned to take advantage of its inherent multidisciplinary design. Because of the multidisciplinary structure of kinesiology, we can develop research programs that draw on multiple disciplines within our departments. This kind of work is ongoing in fields such as biomechanics and motor control working together in an integrative manner to produce new knowledge. We must also extend our work outside the boundaries of kinesiology and draw on expertise in such fields as engineering, biology, public health, and psychology and other disciplines to develop research programs that are competitive in federal funding initiatives. We must maintain our identity as a field of study and emphasize the fundamental importance of movement and physical activity for health and well-being. Funding for research from federal agencies such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Science Foundation (NSF) has become extremely difficult to obtain. Only a few years ago, NIH proposals were funded with grant review scores at the 20th to 25th percentile. Currently, the funding pay line typically requires a grant score at the 10th to 15th percentile. Not only is it more difficult for grants to be funded, but with a larger number of grant proposals being submitted, the competition for federal research dollars has increased dramatically. In addition, universities are placing greater demands on faculty, expecting them to compete for research dollars as state support for public institutions of higher learning decreases. Given this scenario, it is essential for kinesiology faculty to explore strategies to maximize their position in this extremely competitive external-funding environment. Promotion of Interdisciplinary Research at the NIH One of the goals of the NIH Roadmap is to foster interdisciplinary research. This initiative has implemented several programs to facilitate interdisciplinary research. Programs to train interdisciplinary scientists, funding interdisciplinary research The author (AAKPE Fellow #368) is with the Dept. of Kinesiology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA psf@kin.umass.edu 19

2 20 Freedson centers, and offering supplement grants on funded awards in which the focus on the supplement is interdisciplinary research are a few examples of how the NIH is supporting interdisciplinary research. The NIH also accepts and encourages multiple principal investigator applications and has broadened the disciplines of the personnel represented within study sections. All of these practices support the objective of Elias Zerhouni, former director of the NIH, who was the key advocate for promoting interdisciplinary research. This increased emphasis on interdisciplinary research is evident in the number of authors who appear on many high-impact research papers. Wuchty, Jones, and Uzzi (2007) reported that authorship on peer-reviewed publications is predominantly made up of teams of researchers representing multiple disciplines. This is in contrast to solo-authored publications that were much more common just three or four decades ago. They argue that this interdisciplinary team dominance in the research literature suggests that the way we do science today is fundamentally different than how research was conducted in the past. Further evidence of the team approach to the production of new knowledge has spawned a new body of knowledge on the science of team science (Stokols, Hall, Taylor, & Moser, 2008). Kinesiology as an Interdisciplinary Model Multidisciplinary research involves researchers from different disciplines who provide expertise in their specific fields and work independently. The research conducted by multidisciplinary research teams remains relatively independent intellectual streams. In interdisciplinary research, the approach is integrative among the different disciplines, and it is the interaction of the disciplines working jointly together that leads to the generation of new knowledge. Kinesiology is a multidisciplinary field with interdisciplinary opportunities. There are several disciplines housed within departments of kinesiology. Although the structure and scope of disciplines vary widely across departments, kinesiology is unique in comparison with most departments in that multiple disciplines are housed within one unit. For example, some kinesiology departments are only composed of biological and physical sciences (e.g., exercise physiology, biomechanics, motor control and behavior). Others are broader in focus and in addition to the sciences include exercise and sport psychology and sociology, history of sport, and professional programs such as athletic training, teacher training, and sport management. In recent years, universities created interdisciplinary fields of study, typically at the graduate level, in such fields as neuroscience and behavior and molecular and cellular biology in which faculty members from multiple departments are members of these programs. Faculty members from kinesiology departments are members of these programs. A master s program currently offered at the University of South Carolina draws on expertise within the exercise science department and several departments in public health (MPH degree). Similar programs are being developed at the University of Illinois, the University of Texas, and the University of Massa-

3 Interdisciplinary Research Funding 21 chusetts Amherst. Unfortunately, university administrations have not been able to figure out how to integrate these interdisciplinary programs into the overall infrastructure. For example, it remains unclear as to how to fairly distribute faculty teaching credits and how research money is allocated. In many respects, these interdisciplinary programs are similar in design to what already exists in kinesiology departments. The theme that unites the interdisciplinary field of kinesiology is movement. Some prefer the field s unifying term to be physical activity or exercise. Movement is the preferred term used in motor control and biomechanics, whereas exercise physiologists typically use exercise. Those who study movement with a more public health perspective use physical activity. Whatever term is used, there is no doubt that there is some level of commonality that merges all the disciplines together in a manner that is a unique feature of our field. The study of energetics of locomotion economy, etiology of ACL injuries, locomotion balance and coordination, determinants of physical activity, and muscle fatigue in aging are just a few examples of specific research questions that can only be addressed using an interdisciplinary approach to the study of movement, exercise, or physical activity. In these examples, integrating multiple disciplines within kinesiology is necessary to address fundamental mechanisms and understand how movement or physical activity interacts with particular systems. In fact, Gill (2007) argued that integration within kinesiology is essential for maintaining kinesiology as an academic discipline in our colleges and universities. Gregor (2008) described interdisciplinary integration as an individual having academic training in more than one discipline and using the multiple discipline knowledge to address a particular problem or question. Emphasizing interdisciplinary training in the field of kinesiology by encouraging breadth of knowledge as well as depth will provide the ideal environment for training kinesiologists who are integrative in their approach to the study of movement. However, another way to foster interdisciplinary research is to go outside of the boundaries of kinesiology to garner the expertise needed to address research questions in an interdisciplinary manner. Examples of Interdisciplinary Research Beyond Kinesiology Randomized clinical trials examining the impact of school-based physical activity intervention programs on such outcomes as children s level of habitual physical activity or selected coronary heart disease risk factors are excellent examples of studies conducted using interdisciplinary teams of researchers. Individuals from the fields of epidemiology, community health, psychology, biostatistics, and kinesiology developed successful grant proposals that were funded by the NIH (Mc- Kenzie et al., 1996; Sallis et al., 1997; Stevens et al., 2005). These studies used an integrated approach with the multiple disciplines exploring not just the impact of physical activity on the outcomes but also the mechanisms underlying behavior change. These kinds of studies provide a solid foundation for translating research findings for broad-based dissemination and implementation.

4 22 Freedson We submitted proposals in response to two program announcements from the NIH. The specific program announcements requested proposals to improve diet and physical activity assessment. In our exercise physiology laboratory, we developed and validated methods to calibrate accelerometers so that they could be used in the field to estimate habitual physical activity dose. Our research record in this area was fairly strong, and we felt that we were in a good position to submit applications in response to this announcement. The work we had done to date was conducted with the expertise within the department and had been received favorably by the physical activity measurement community. We decided that the field was fairly stagnant and needed some new ideas to move this research area forward. In the first application, we recruited a statistician/mathematician with expertise in neural networks used in pattern recognition applications. Our idea was to apply the neural network methods to process our activity monitor data to improve on the prediction of energy expenditure and to actually identify specific types of physical activities. This was certainly a novel idea and one that was received favorably by the NIH study section. The only way we could do what we proposed to do was with the expertise of the mathematician; his knowledge in neural networks was integrated with our expertise in laboratory calibration of accelerometers. This is an example of interdisciplinary research in which the different disciplines interact from the beginning of the process. This approach moves the field of objective physical activity assessment forward and completely revamps how we think about and interpret physical activity data from accelerometers. We also responded to a program announcement from the NIH Genes and the Environment Initiative that requested applications to improve measures of diet and physical activity. For this announcement we responded with a proposal to develop new technology to assess physical activity. We put together a team of researchers from kinesiology, mathematics and statistics, and engineering. We discussed the needs from a technology perspective to move the field of objective physical activity assessment forward. In this application, we proposed to develop a multisensor device that employed an accelerometer, a device to assess respiration, and a device that could identify whether a person was inside or outside of a building. The engineers proposed the miniature design specifications for the multiple sensors, power demands and battery requirements, how the data would be processed on board, an on-board storage system, and an optional wireless transmission of data through a cell phone. The mathematician provided the postcollection data processing using neural networks, and we provided the experiments to calibrate and validate the system on human subjects in the laboratory under controlled conditions and during free-living activity in the field. Factors also considered were issues related to cost and subject burden, and possible solutions were provided. Both of these proposals were funded and judged to be innovative with large potential to move research on objective physical activity assessment forward. The investigators on these projects were all trained in specific disciplines and were not trained as interdisciplinary scientists as described by Gregor (2008). However, the teams were able to successfully integrate the specific disciplines to create interdisciplinary applications.

5 Interdisciplinary Research Funding 23 Promoting Interdisciplinary Research: Implications for Faculty Hiring Cluster hiring practices have emerged at institutions of higher learning where investments are being made in hiring faculty whose area of expertise crosses several disciplines. For example, a faculty hire in the area of obesity and chronic disease may be someone who studies energy metabolism, the biomechanics of osteoarthritis, or the built environment. If this person is housed in kinesiology, he or she could work with faculty in nutrition, engineering, transportation planning, and biology. Strategies that kinesiology departments use to decide particular areas of expertise for faculty positions should consider the potential the area has for interdisciplinary research. It is clear that funding agencies are very supportive of interdisciplinary work to address problems and answer fundamental questions. These hiring decisions might have important implications for success in securing external research funding. Challenges for the Future It is clear that the field of kinesiology is uniquely positioned to be a major player in interdisciplinary research funding. This can be successful within the field by bringing together multiple disciplines within kinesiology to address research questions. As needed, we must also go outside of kinesiology to bring experts in other fields to the research team to develop the best possible approach as to how research questions are addressed. It is critical that we as kinesiologists maintain our own identity and insure that kinesiology is a principal component of the interdisciplinary efforts. In bringing experts outside of kinesiology to the table, we must also insure that the other disciplines view the importance of kinesiology as a critical area and not just as a tool to promote their own research agenda. As we train the kinesiologists of the future, we must be flexible in curriculum design and research opportunities to capitalize on the integrative approaches to the study of movement. References Gill, D.L. (2007). Integration: The key to sustaining kinesiology in higher education. Quest, 59, Gregor, R.J. (2008). Interdisciplinary vertical integration: The future of biomechanics. Quest, 60, McKenzie, T.L., Nader, P.R., Strickmiller, P.K., Yang, M., Stone, E.J., Perry, C.L., et al. (1996). School physical education: Effect of the child and adolescent trial for cardiovascular health. Preventive Medicine, 25, Sallis, J.F., McKenzie, T.L., Alcaraz, J.E., Kolody, B., Faucette, N., & Hovell, M.F. (1997). The effects of a 2-year physical education program (SPARK) on physical activity and fitness in elementary school students. American Journal of Public Health, 87,

6 24 Freedson Stevens, J., Murray, D.M., Catellier, D.J., Hannan, P.J., Lytle, L.A., Elder, J.P., et al. (2005). Design of the Trial of Activity in Adolescent Girls (TAAG). Contemporary Clinical Trials, 26, Stokols, D., Hall, K.L., Taylor, B.K., & Moser, R.P. (2008). The science of team science. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 35(2S), S77 S89. Wuchty, S., Jones, B.F., & Uzzi, B. (2007). The increasing dominance of teams in production of knowledge. Science, 316,