R:13 September 19, 2011

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Converging biology, economics and social science in fisheries research –lessons

learned

Päivi Haapasaari, Soile Kulmala and Sakari Kuikka

www.helsinki.fi/science/fem/index.html

Fishery – a bound of uncertain

relationships

• A fishery is a plexus of relationships that interacts with broader natural and human systems

• Any individual science unable to provide comprehensive analyses

• Collaboration between disciplines is needed • Problem solving > interdisciplinarity

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• Skills and methods are needed that enable the integration of knowledge from different fields in one model that can support decision making

Interdisciplinary collaboration between conceptually different fields is difficult and frequently remains half-way

• definition and contents of interdisciplinarity unclear

• disciplinary cultures (practices, paradigms, languages, world views ) differ from each other

• a foot on two (three?) fields

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What interdisciplinarity is?

• Intensive form of collaboration that integrates empirical data, combines methodological approaches, or synthesizes concepts, models or theories • builds on interaction

• Must be distinguished from • Multidisciplinarity: a juxtaposition of mono-disciplinary

approaches with separate problems, separate methodologies and insignificant interaction; insufficient for problem solving

• Transdisciplinarity: a hybrid that subordinates disciplines, scientists and stakeholders, science and practice, and scientific and non-scientific knowledge under alarge synthesizing framework

Interdisciplinary process (by DeWachter 1982)

• 1. Accept a methodological epoché and abstain from mono-disciplinary approach

• 2. Formulate a global question by acknowledging all roles, aspects and approaches in the wholeness

• 3. Translate the global question into the specific language of each discipline

• 4. Produce a global answer by integrating all particular answers (into a common model through a common language)

• Aims: • increase understanding on Baltic salmon fisheries through integrating

knowledge from fisheries science, economics, and social science• build an integrated decision support tool for long term management• 8 years, 3 projects

• Methodological epoch: Bayesian belief networks• Global question: What kind of management decisions would lead to both

economically optimal and biologically sustainable fishery, if the implementation uncertainty were taken into account, and which alternative management objectives and options would lead to best output in terms of biological, commercial and recreational utility?

The Baltic Salmon case

Management decision

Biological management

objective

Post smolt survival

Implementation

Commitment

Recruitment strong river

Recruitment

weak riverTotal

profitsIndex river abundance

Social utility

Recreational utility

Commercial

utility

Biological

utility

Social science

Economics

Natural science

Interdisciplinarity is a process of learning: three levels

What did we learn about interdisciplinarity?

Integration

Links

Communication

Interdisciplinarity is learning

• Learning between individuals • understand and respect each others’ way of thinking • understand other approaches• think holistically• search for an interdisiciplinary identity

• Learning between disciplines• acknowledge and analyze disciplinary differences• search for a common territory and a common language • search for a common methodology

• Learning between knowledge• integrate disciplinary knowledge• knowledge learns from knowledge

How to succeed?

• frequent interaction and continuous discussion• good personal chemistry• close proximity • knowing each other• small collaborative teams• ”stupid” questions• time

Thank you!

www.helsinki.fi/science/fem/index.html