This paper analyzes the development of research on multidisciplinary teams in psychiatry, both around the world and in Japan. The analysis assesses both research overall and studies focused on the themes of community care, consultation-liaison, management, and recovery. Publication of research on psychiatric multidisciplinary teams in Japan commenced some 26 years after it became a topic of focus in other areas around the world. Since around 2011, however, research on this topic in Japan has progressed rapidly.
 In terms of the activities of psychiatric multidisciplinary teams, it appears that the topic of community-based care has not recently been a major research focus in other countries. In Japan, however, research in this field still attracts a great deal of interest. Japan's lag behind the rest of the world is even more prominent in the field of consultation-liaison psychiatry;Japan is just beginning to see publications in this area. In the rest of the world, the importance of management in the context of multidisciplinary teams has been a focus of research since the 1980s, but it continues to lack sufficient attention in Japan. At the same time, the question of how the psychiatric multidisciplinary team can contribute to the overall recovery of the person remains a target worthy of additional research in both other countries and Japan.
 Psychiatrists alone cannot provide sufficient support for an individual's recovery; it is necessary to address recovery in a comprehensive manner, via the psychiatric multidisciplinary team. Without good management, however, the team will not function effectively. In Japan, the legal framework requires the physician to act as coordinator/leader in managing team members from other disciplines. Therefore, psychiatrists are both responsible for the care they provide themselves, and accountable for the care provided by the team as a whole. In order to be truly accountable, however, psychiatrists need to understand the care provided to the individual by other disciplines.
 The need for effective collaboration across disciplines is common to all specialties. It is hoped that this series will be read and utilized by a wide range of people from various disciplines.
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