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HICSS
2005
IEEE

The Rules of Virtual Groups

13 years 9 months ago
The Rules of Virtual Groups
Concerns about virtual groups include how members develop trust and liking for partners. Previous studies have explored behavioral variables leading to subjectively-experienced trust and/or liking, or trusting behaviors that are associated with group productivity. Drawing on practices described elsewhere and deriving principles from social information processing theory of computer-mediated communication, this research identified a set of communication rules for virtual groups. A quasiexperimental procedure promoted variance in rule following behavior, allowing assessment of rules in an inter-university course. Six rules were assessed through self-reported measures, and results reveal correlations between each rule and trust and liking. Less consistent are the relationships between rulefollowing and actual performance. Results suggest that either a powerful set of rules has been identified, or that rule-following per se reduces uncertainty and enhances trust in distributed work teams.
Joseph B. Walther, Ulla Bunz, Natalia N. Bazarova
Added 24 Jun 2010
Updated 24 Jun 2010
Type Conference
Year 2005
Where HICSS
Authors Joseph B. Walther, Ulla Bunz, Natalia N. Bazarova
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