Table 2.

Challenges, Facilitating Factors, and Strategies for Success

Challenges
(1) Limited published guidance for how to engage in TD team science	Lack of knowledge about “what TD research is”, “how to get there,” and why to do it
(2) Conceptual and scientific challenges inherent to TD integration	Requires added investments of time and effort
	Pushes investigators beyond their comfort zones
(3) Discipline-based differences	Communication challenges due to differences in terminology
	Misunderstandings or conflicts due to differences in discipline-based values, goals, methods, traditions, work styles
(4) Project management challenges	May necessitate new data management systems to store a complex mix of data at multiple levels of analysis, from multiple sources
	Leadership and coordination for a large TD team require unique set of expertise and additional time and effort
	Involves navigating varied department/organization/institution-level cultures, policies, routines, procedures, and work processes
(5) Traditional incentive and reward systems	Systems, attitudes, and policies at academic institutions that discourage TD research and/or team science
	Limited funding opportunities and publishing venues for TD team science
	Peer review (IRB, grant application review, manuscript review) by peers unfamiliar with TD team science
Facilitating Factors and Strategies for Success
(1) Beneficial attitudes and beliefs	The attitude that every discipline has strengths and weaknesses
	Belief in the added value that can be generated by TD research and team science
	Scientific curiosity about questions at the boundaries of knowledge and areas of science outside of one's expertise
(2) Effective team processes	Articulation of shared goals
	Development of mutual understanding among team members (a) by teaching each other about their disciplines, including potential contributions to the shared research goals, and (b) through frequent communication
(3) Brokering and bridge-building activities	Networking opportunities at the center level, e.g., center-wide symposia
	“Matchmaking” and bridge-building among potential collaborators by individuals in unique roles, including senior investigators, biostatisticians, and trainees
(4) Funding initiative characteristics	Explicit expectations for TD integration in the funding announcement and funding agency communication with grantees
	Cross-center working groups around shared areas of shared interest, with regularly scheduled meetings
	Funding for additional small scale research projects addressing emerging TD research questions
	All-grantee meetings for information sharing and networking
	Funded TD investigator opportunities for trainees