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As with simulated research sites, the most suitable sites for existing agricultural systems will be determined from the research goals. Examples of where existing sites may be better than simulated sites for systems research include: Farm-scale questions, particularly those relating to effects of farm-scale vegetation or land use, farmer decision-making, marketing strategies and farm enterprise […]

All simulated agricultural systems experiments attempt to mimic the behavior of real-world systems. To ensure that they represent viable systems from the perspective of practitioners, these experiments must be developed with grower participation. The research team needs to be clear during both the design and implementation phases about what systems are being represented in the […]

Two distinct approaches have generally been used to situate interdisciplinary studies of agricultural systems (Shennan et al., 1991; Drinkwater, 2002). One approach uses simulated agricultural systems, which are simulated, replicated experiments designed to answer specific questions. Simulated agricultural systems are often set up at agricultural research stations but can also be located on farms. The […]

After the team has developed a set of goals and objectives, the next step is to formulate the project (or experimental) plan. In this phase, the team plans the overall experimental design and specifies methods for implementation, analysis, and interpretation of results. Projects that generate results to be applied in farming systems should include a […]

Collaborative research is most successful when it progresses sequentially through the steps of project development. The process begins with sharing knowledge and information, moves to defining the problem and setting goals, and then to developing the questions and hypotheses that form the basis for the experimental plan. Figure 3.1 shows how a team can move […]

While meetings are important, nothing can ruin a collaboration faster than long, drawn-out get-togethers in which participants feel little is accomplished. Learning to conduct effective meetings is a key skill for collaborative groups in planning and carrying out agricultural systems research. When the project team is forming, the group will spend more time in meetings […]

Participatory decision-making in an interdisciplinary research team is challenging. While the team may easily identify a common goal, there are likely to be as many perceived pathways for reaching that goal as there are team members. However, democratic decision-making is essential for effective collaboration. The decision-making process is most visible in meeting settings, so the […]

Commonly, collaborative research groups in universities organize as loosely affiliated individuals with a project leader who coordinates the various research components. This “multidisciplinary” mode of working together is the most common approach to collaboration, in part because it requires less time in meetings and allows individuals to work in a business-as-usual way within a larger […]

With these key concepts as the foundation, the goal of systems research is to develop knowledge about how a complex system functions as a whole. This goal, with the assumption that the interactions among components must be studied in order to understand the whole system, is the hallmark of systems thinking. Hence, agricultural systems research […]