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A Model for the Transdisciplinary Research Process
This model aims to guide researchers through the challenging tasks of problem constitution, knowledge integration, and the participation of societal actors. It was developed at the Institute for Social-Ecological Research (ISOE) in 2004 and subsequently refined. The model (see figure 1) builds upon a basic proposition: developing solutions for complex societal problems requires linking these problems to gaps in the existing bodies of knowledge, that is, to scientific problems. This proposition allows one to conceptualize the contributions of research to societal and scientific progress as the two epistemic ends of a single integrative process. This consists of three tasks (problem constitution, knowledge integration, participation of societal actors) across three consecutive phases (A to C).
Problem Constitution (Phase A)
Starting with the identification of a societal problem (figure1, upper left), the process of problem constitution comprises several important conceptual steps (not shown in the figure):
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