Short Abstract

Based on our collective experience of cross-sectoral and cross-disciplinary health research we aim to establish, together with the participants, sets of principles that can better facilitate collaborations between social scientists, other academic disciplines, policy makers, and the private sector.

Long Abstract

Calls for research collaborations have been getting increasingly louder over the past few years, particularly in health- and well-being related areas; however, there is little guidance on how to put them into practice. The proposed lab will thematically focus on three broad areas pertinent to this: a) establishing collaborations, b) communicating findings, and c) translating research into action. We will touch on several cross-cutting themes within these areas, such as addressing methodological and conceptual differences and similarities and communicating and aligning expectations.

Across all these areas, the organisers will facilitate discussion by drawing on their own experiences, such as consulting with UNICEF and the US government (Abramowitz), working with and advocating for vulnerable populations (Lipovec Cebron), leading a global partnership programme around diabetes prevention (Hesseldal), engaging with diverse stakeholders around complex health-related issues (Radchenko), and developing research methods and study protocols in diverse settings (Volkmann).

In the course of our session and in dialogue with the participants, we will highlight specific issues, challenges, and opportunities and together develop a set of principles that respond to them. We envisage three to five principles for each of the thematic areas mentioned above and plan to develop those further, ideally with the involvement of interested lab participants, into a handbook that will be available as a common good.