In this editorial, the authors examine how management scholars can more effectively develop rigorous and impactful interdisciplinary research in response to increasingly complex organizational and societal challenges. While interdisciplinarity is widely encouraged across academia, the editorial highlights the practical and intellectual difficulties researchers often face when attempting to integrate insights, theories, and methods from outside management studies.
Drawing on a narrative-integrative review and a range of illustrative examples, the authors introduce the Interdisciplinarity Diffusion Framework, which maps interdisciplinary research according to both the proximity of source disciplines to management and the primary mode through which ideas diffuse, including theory, methods, and phenomena.
Building on this framework, the editorial outlines four cornerstone practices designed to support scholars throughout the interdisciplinary research process. These practices provide guidance on identifying promising interdisciplinary opportunities, adapting and translating ideas across disciplinary boundaries, building effective collaborative teams, and positioning interdisciplinary contributions for management audiences.
The authors also broaden the discussion beyond individual researchers by emphasizing the important roles played by reviewers, editors, universities, and scholarly institutions in creating conditions where interdisciplinary work can flourish. Collectively, the editorial argues that fostering interdisciplinarity is essential to strengthening the intellectual vitality, relevance, and societal impact of management scholarship.
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