Development and Validation of Three Scales Measuring Interdisciplinary Research Team Participants’ Experiences

Evaluating interdisciplinary research (IDR) teams is essential for improving productivity and outcomes. To contribute to the growing toolkit for evaluating IDR teamwork, we created three scales: IDR Gains, Principal Investigator (PI) Perceptions of Challenges, and Non-PI Perceptions of PIs—designed for use in academic settings. The scales were psychometrically tested with university faculty from various disciplines ( n = 345) who were invited to apply for interdisciplinary seed-grants. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed good model fit, and all scales demonstrated high reliability (α ≥ .9) and convergent validity. These instruments offer valuable tools for assessing and enhancing researchers’ experiences with IDR, particularly in colleges/universities.