Team Problem Solving: Effects of Communication and Function Overlap

Abstract

A theoretical framework is developed to assess factors that affect crew productivity in problem solving tasks. A taxonomic analysis is expanded to consider interrelations between categories of factors, namely characteristics of resources, of the task, and of the group. Experimental results are presented to examine the effect of degree of communication and of function overlap on problem solving by two-person crews. The data suggest that communication facilitates problem solving when there is no function overlap; when communication is restricted, problem solving is impeded when there is partial overlap of function. The findings are discussed with a focus on the concept that crew behavior is not a simple aggregation of the contributions made by individual crew members. Keywords: Team performance, Function allocation, Communication.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 01, 1987
Accession Number
ADA187010

Entities

People

  • Erhard O. Eimer

Organizations

  • Armstrong Laboratory

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  • Biomedical
  • Human Systems
  • Space

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  • Training

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  • Education

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  • Instructional Design and Training Evaluation.
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