Collaboration: the prodigal process

Collaboration: the prodigal process

Collaborative processes are beginning to play an increasingly important part in global efforts to control pollution, population and more recently the threat of
terrorism. Technological advances in communication have resulted in a greater sense of the global community in which we live and interact. Traditional concepts and roles
are being overturned at a progressively faster rate, resulting in us living in a period of ‘necessary interdependence’ (1993, p. 21). As a result, society has become increasingly aware of and more wiling to accommodate difference. Socialisation in Western society emphasises competitiveness and self-promotion, factors which do not
prepare individuals wishing to undertake a collaborative process characterised by interdependence and mutual compromise. The increasing acceptance and extent of
collaborative practice, in areas such as contemporary art, is one reflection of this global situation. An understanding of the creative and innovative approaches utilised in the arts will contribute to an area of increasing interest and relevance in contemporary society, particularly as the benefits of collaborating are linked to creativity in problem solving. This paper will investigate why collaborative processes are being encouraged in various sectors, such as education, and why such processes have appeared only in recent times.

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