Group Versus Individual Training and Group Performance: The Mediating Role of Transactive Memory

Abstract

The task performance of laboratory work groups whose members were trained together or alone was investigated. At an initial training session, subjects were taught to assemble transistor radios. Some were trained in groups, others individually. A week later, subjects were asked to recall the assembly procedure and actually assemble a radio. Everyone performed these tasks in small work groups, each containing three persons of the same gender. Subjects in the group training condition worked in the same groups where they were trained, whereas subjects in the individual training condition worked in newly formed groups. Groups whose members were trained together recalled more about the assembly procedure and produced better-quality radios than groups whose members were trained alone. Through an analysis of videotape data, the mediating effects of various cognitive and social factors on the relationship between group training and performance were explored. The results indicated that group training improved group performance primarily by fostering the development of transactive memory systems among group members.

Does team stability mediate the relationship between leadership and team learning? An empirical study among Dutch project teams

“…Teams characterized by a lack of group longevity experience greater difficulty recognizing and integrating their knowledge for efficient task completion (Liang, Moreland, & Argote, 1995). Nevertheless, the relationship of team stability with team learning and performance is a matter of some debate in the literature (Edmondson, Bohmer, & Pisano, 2001 (Edmondson, Winslow, Bohmer, & Pisano, 2003;Moreland & Levine, 1989).…”

The effects of team training on team outcomes: A meta-analysis

“…Seven measures from four studies were categorized as cognitive outcomes that indicate some type of cognitive change attained by the trainees. Example cognitive measures are ratings of interpositional knowledge (knowledge an individual holds with respect to the roles and needs of other team members under the demands of specific task situations; Cannon-Bowers, Salas, Blickensderfer, & Bowers, 1998), development of shared mental models (Marks, Sabella, Burke, & Zaccaro, 2002), and procedural recall and memory differentiation (Liang, Moreland, & Argote, 1995). Subjective task-based skill outcomes.…”

“…Twenty measures from nine studies were categorized as objective task-based skill outcomes. Examples of objective measures are team performance (as indicated by points earned in a simulation game; Day et al, 2005), tons per manshift (Buller, 1988;Buller & Bell, 1986), accuracy and speed , and assembly errors and assembly time (Liang et al, 1995). Teamwork skill outcomes.…”

Building the infrastructure: The effects of role identification behaviors on team cognition development and performance.

“…Because of the differentiated nature of teams requiring cognitive mechanisms to enhance coordination, one specific form of team training, cross-training, might be especially beneficial as it increases interpositional knowledge regarding team members' roles and responsibilities. Moreland and his colleagues (e.g., Liang et al, 1995;Moreland et al, 1998) found that teams that trained together developed a stronger transactive memory system, while Cannon-Bowers, Salas, Blickensderfer, and Bowers (1998) Team Cognition Development 16 found that cross-training was positively related to mental model development. Cross-training may therefore act as a partial substitute for initial role identification behaviors, providing teams with a basic understanding of each other's domains and jump-starting the development of team cognition (Marks et al, 2002).…”