Collaboration and research teams are increasingly becoming the norm within the academic research environment, especially within the Humanities Computing/Digital Humanities (HC) environment. The research projects in this area need a variety of skills and expertise to accomplish their goals. At present, there are several national and international projects as well as numerous ones at the local level with many others in development. Despite this extensive use of research terms, there are few protocols in place to prepare individuals to work as part of a team. To address this gap, a team of researchers is undertaking work to identify effective work patterns and intra-team relationships and recommend supports for existing and future teams.
Because we recognize that libraries and librarians have essential roles to play in virtually any large research project, we are directing this survey specifically at librarians and archivists. Your input will help us understand the nature of team research within the HC environment in order to develop supports and research preparation tools to maximize the likelihood of success by minimizing the associated challenges of team research.
The questionnaire will take about 30 minutes. We value your response and are grateful for your help.
PART 1: DIGITAL LIBRARIES OR HUMANITIES PROJECTS:
This section focuses on your involvement in digital humanities projects generally.
IN1: How many digital libraries or digital humanities team projects have you been involved in, over the past 12 months. (Users of IE and Chrome will have to click on the link, but please click on the radio button first. Users of Firefox, Opera, and Safari will be automatically relocated by choosing the radio button.)
One
Two
Three
Four or more
None – if None, then skip to demographic section.
IN2: Why do you work in a project team? (Check as many as apply.)
Different methodological approaches to research by team members
Team members have different skill sets
The volume of data to be studied
The project schedule requires multiple staff to complete it in time
The data is in a range of different languages
Data is collected from geographically distributed areas or participants
Collaboration is more productive than individual work
I enjoy collaboration
Other, please specify
IN3: What percent of your digital libraries or digital humanities projects are:
IN4: What type of digital libraries or digital humanities projects have you been a part of in the last 12 months? Please indicate the number of each in which you have been involved.
Part 2: PROJECT SPECIFIC QUESTIONS
These next sections will focus on your involvement in your last digital humanities and / or digital libraries work completed with a project team.
A: PROJECT DEMOGRAPHICS
These questions will focus on project demographics on your last digital humanities / digital libraries team project.
Thinking of your last Digital Libraries or Digital Humanities Project completed in a team:
PS1: How many individuals, including yourself, were attached to the project?
2
3-5
6-10
More than 10
PS2: What was the total budget for the project?
0 - $9,999 CDN/US (0 - £4,900/0 - €6,499)
$10,000 - $49,999 CDN/US (£5,000 - £24,999/€6,500 - €31,999)
$50,000 - $249,999 CDN/US (£25,000 - £124,999/€32,000 - €174,999)
$250,000 CDN/US and more (£125,000 and more/€175,000 and more)
PS3: What was your role in the team:
Lead Researcher/Leader/Co-Leader
Team member
Technical Support
Administrative Support
Software Developer
Librarian
Archivist
Other:
B: COMMUNICATION
The following questions have to do with the types of communication mechanisms used by your team.
CO1: Please indicate the percentage of team communication that occurred by each of the following communication types:
CO2: Please indicate how effective each of the forms of communication was for your team, where applicable:
C. LEADERSHIP AND DECISION MAKING
The next set of questions has to do with the leadership structure and decision-making processes of your team.
LD1: What decision-making processes were used for the digital humanities team, and how effective were they?
LD2: Please indicate how important each type of decision making is in your team:
D. ORGANIZATIONAL MECHANISMS
The following questions have to do with the organizational mechanisms of the team.
OM1: Our team has a formal document outlining the organizational structure. (Users of IE and Chrome will have to click on the link, but please click on the radio button first. Users of Firefox, Opera, and Safari will be automatically relocated by choosing the radio button.)
Yes
No, skip to OM4
OM2: The formal organizational structure is well understood
Strongly Disagree Disagree No Opinion Agree Strongly Agree
OM3: The formal organizational structure is effective
OM4: Does your team have a formal project plan/project management document that outlines project goals, outcomes and timelines? (Users of IE and Chrome will have to click on the link, but please click on the radio button first. Users of Firefox, Opera, and Safari will be automatically relocated by choosing the radio button.)
No, skip to OM9
OM5: The process and steps required to meet the project goals are well understood:
OM7: The project goals are well understood:
OM8: The mechanism for setting and sharing project goals is effective:
OM9: Does your team have a team charter/formal document that outlines the roles and responsibilities of team members? (Users of IE and Chrome will have to click on the link, but please click on the radio button first. Users of Firefox, Opera, and Safari will be automatically relocated by choosing the radio button.)
No, skip to OM11
OM10: The roles and responsibilities of team members are well understood:
OM11: Does your team have a formal document that outline decision-making processes? (Users of IE and Chrome will have to click on the link, but please click on the radio button first. Users of Firefox, Opera, and Safari will be automatically relocated by choosing the radio button.)
No Skip to OM13
OM12: The decision-making processes are well understood:
OM13: Does your team have a formal document outlining dispute resolution processes? (Users of IE and Chrome will have to click on the link, but please click on the radio button first. Users of Firefox, Opera, and Safari will be automatically relocated by choosing the radio button.)
No Skip to OM16
OM14: The dispute resolution processes are well understood:
OM15: The dispute resolution processes are effective:
OM16: Overall, how satisfied are you with the organization and processes of your digital humanities team?
Very Dissatisfied Dissatisfied No Opinion Satisfied Very Satisfied
E. INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT
These questions focus on supports provided by your institution.
IS1: Does your institution provide support for digital libraries or digital humanities teams? (Users of IE and Chrome will have to click on the link, but please click on the radio button first. Users of Firefox, Opera, and Safari will be automatically relocated by choosing the radio button.)
No, skip to IR1
IS2: What types of support does your institution give your team, and how effective is it?
IS3: Please indicate how important for project success each form of support is for your team:
IS4: Overall, how satisfied are you with the level of support given by your institution?
INSTITUTIONAL REWARDS / INCENTIVES
The next section deals with the rewards or incentives that your institution may provide.
IR1: Does your institution provide incentives/rewards for participating in digital libraries or digital humanities teams? (Users of IE and Chrome will have to click on the link, but please click on the radio button first. Users of Firefox, Opera, and Safari will be automatically relocated by choosing the radio button.)
No, skip to FC1
IR2: What types of rewards/incentives are given by your institution and how effective are they?
IR3: Please indicate how important each type of reward or incentive is in your team:
IR4: Overall, how satisfied are you with the level of rewards/incentives given by your institution?
FINAL COMMENTS
FC1: Overall, how successful was your last digital humanities or digital libraries project?
Very Unsuccessful Unsuccessful Neither Unsuccessful nor Successful Successful Very Successful
FC2: What are the challenges of working in a team? (OPEN-ENDED)
FC3: What are the benefits of working in a team? (OPEN-ENDED)
FC4: what advice might you give a team undertaking their first Digital Libraries or Digital Humanities project? (OPEN-ENDED)
Confirmation details:
The information provided in this section will be used only to verify that you participated in this study; the information will be removed from the research dataset and saved securely in a separate location.
Name [optional]:
Institutional Affiliation:
E-mail address:
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Demographic details:
The information collected in this section will help us greatly with our analysis. The data will be kept in a secure location, and will never be published in such a way as to allow for identification of individuals.
First Language:
English
French
German
Italian
Spanish
Dutch
Other: please specify
Gender:
Female
Male
I prefer not to answer.
Affiliation:
University
Publisher
Research Centre/Library
Public Library
Archive
Other
Position (Check all that apply):
Academic: Indicate Rank (Check all that apply)
Assistant Professor
Associate Professor
Full Professor
Instructor / Lecturer / Demonstrator
Public Librarian
Student: Indicate level
Master
Doctoral
Post Doctoral Fellow
Researcher
Programmer/Developer
Age:
20-29
30-39
40-49
50-59
60 and over
Academic Discipline/Training (Check all that apply):
Anatomy
Anthropology
Archaeology
Architecture
Archival Studies
Art
Asian Studies
Astronomy
Astrophysics
Biochemistry
Biology
Business
Chemistry
Classics
Communication
Comparative Literature
Computer Science
Cultural Studies
Dance
Earth Science
Ecology
Economics
Education
Engineering
Environmental Science
Ergonomics
Ethnology
Evolutionary biology
Film Studies
Forestry
French language and/or literature
Geography
Geology
German language and/or literature
History
Human biology
Humanities
Industrial Relations
Journalism
Law
Library and Information Science
Library and Museum Studies
Linguistics
Marine biology
Mathematics
Medicine
Military Science
Mineralogy
Molecular biology
Music
Native Studies
Neuroscience
Nuclear physics
Oceanography
Other foreign-language language and/or literature
Paleontology
Philosophy
Physics
Planetary science
Political science
Psychology
Religious Studies
Semiotics
Sociology
Spanish language and/or literature
Theology
Women's Studies and/or Gender Studies
Zoology
Thank you for taking the time to complete this questionnaire. Your assistance in providing this information is very much appreciated.
Please use the space below to comment on any other aspect of research teams in Digital Libraries / Digital Humanities that may be of interest to our study. Then click the "Submit" button below that.
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