On Wednesday the 11th of May, DHPA and LLMVC hosted a joint workshop on interdisciplinary methodologies, which was attended by research staff and PGR students from both schools. The theme of the workshop was the risks and stakes of working across disciplinary boundaries, in terms of perceived validity and legitimacy. How do we navigate past and engage with the established paradigms and methodologies when we venture into a different disciplinary area -- for example, what does it mean to 'do history' as a modern linguist? How do we get round the disciplinary gatekeepers who give themselves the role of determining what makes for a valid contribution in the area?
The talks were delivered by an external speaker, Dr Undine Sellbach (Philosophy at Dundee University), and two internal speakers -- Professor Ed Welch (French) and Dr Arnar Árnason (Anthropology). The format was a 20 min talk from each speaker, followed by Q&A.
Both LLMVC and DHPA have recently been discussing ways of fostering interdisciplinary collaboration in research in and beyond the Humanities, especially in light of the strategy set out in Aberdeen 2040. The workshop provided an opportunity for research staff and PGRs to share experiences of potential challenges and exchange ideas about how best to facilitate interdisciplinary research between the two school.