Crowdsourced 'R&D' and medical research

Abstract

Introduction or background: Crowdsourced R&D, a research methodology increasingly applied to medical research, has properties well suited to large-scale medical data collection and analysis, as well as enabling rapid research responses to crises such as disease outbreaks.

Sources of data: Multidisciplinary literature offers diverse perspectives of crowdsourced R&D as a useful large-scale medical data collection and research problem-solving methodology.

Areas of agreement: Crowdsourced R&D has demonstrated 'proof of concept' in a host of different biomedical research applications.

Areas of controversy: A wide range of quality and ethical issues relate to crowdsourced R&D.

Growing points: The rapid growth in applications of crowdsourced R&D in medical research is predicted by an increasing body of multidisciplinary theory.

Areas for timely research: Further research in areas such as artificial intelligence may allow better coordination and management of the high volumes of medical data and problem-solving inputs generated by the crowdsourced R&D process.

Keywords: knowledge management; medical research; multidisciplinary; scientific research; theory.