Session 6: HIBAR Research – Exploring how research can make a difference in the real world

(Reflections from Stefanie Habersang)

Marc-David Seidel introduced the HIBAR approach in the very last session. HIBAR stands for highly integrative basic and responsive research. This approach seeks to combine a desire for discovery and a desire to solve major problems (often related to grand challenges) through collaboration between academic and non-academic experts. The HIBAR approach highlights collaboration that is interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary and supports diverse expert teams to make a real difference in the world. This keynote provided an inspiring closing as Marc-David Seidel reminded us to think about solving important problems and daring to cross disciplinary boundaries. In this regard, interpretive data science might offer a promising opportunity to bring together scholars from various fields (e.g. Management, Information Systems, Sociology, Sustainability, etc.) with different abilities (e.g. qualitative or quantitative methods) to tackle important real world problems.