Unpacking the Role of Feedback in Virtual Team Effectiveness

Abstract

Feedback is a cornerstone of human development. Not surprisingly, it plays a vital role in team development. However, the literature examining the specific role of feedback in virtual team effectiveness remains scattered. To improve our understanding of feedback in virtual teams, we identified 59 studies that examine how different feedback characteristics (content, source, and level) impact virtual team effectiveness. Our findings suggest that virtual teams benefit particularly from feedback that (a) combines performance-related information with information on team processes and/or psychological states, (b) stems from an objective source, and (c) targets the team as a whole. By integrating the existing knowledge, we point researchers in the direction of the most pressing research needs, as well as the practices that are most likely to pay off when designing feedback interventions in virtual teams.

The meeting after the meeting: A conceptualization and process model

“…Finally, it would be interesting to specifically investigate the role and occurrence of the MATM in virtual contexts. Virtual collaboration is generally associated with higher levels of ambiguity than face-to-face interaction, given there are fewer (or even no) observational opportunities and thus less information on other team members’ work environments, actions, thoughts, and feelings (e.g., Handke et al, 2022; McLarnon et al, 2019). Accordingly, virtual collaboration likely requires more sensemaking processes, yet at the same time, it provides less opportunities for informal, unscheduled conversations (Lechner & Tobias Mortlock, 2021; Webster & Staples, 2006).…”

Feed-Back About the Collaboration Process from a Group Awareness Tool. Potential Boundary Conditions for Effective Regulation

“…The notion of gathering information about the actions of the other team members can be found in the concept of group awareness (Schnaubert & Bodemer, 2022) which Dourish and Bellotti (1992) defined as "an understanding of the activities of others, which provides a context for [one's] own activity" (Dourish & Bellotti, 1992, p. 107). If the intention of the information is to increase a teams' performance, small group researchers refer to it as "team feed-back" while if the feed-back focuses on processes or psychological states in the team is termed "team mediator feed-back" (Handke et al, 2022).…”

“…GATs provide groups with a visualization which can be characterized as team (mediator) feed-back (Handke et al, 2022), that is, information regarding past performance or the current state of the collaboration. The group can utilize this feed-back to improve the group's performance, that is, the quality of the interaction in the group (Carless & Boud, 2018;Handke et al, 2022;Hattie & Timperley, 2007;Lipnevich & Panadero, 2021). The information provided by a GAT does not contain information about potential desired goal-states (feed-up), or guidance regarding potentially helpful strategies (feed-forward).…”

CALL FOR PAPERS Small Group Research Special Guest Edited Issue on AI in Groups and Teams

“…The editorial team of Small Group Research invites authors to submit papers for a Special Issue on AI in Groups and Teams. It is essential to examine the role of AI in group and team settings given the growing integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning technologies into various aspects of work (e.g., Bezrukova et al, 2023; Handke et al, 2022), coupled with the ongoing development of communication technologies and the evolving dynamics of group collaboration (e.g., Gupta & Woolley, 2021). This Special Issue seeks to consolidate our understanding of AI in groups and teams and explore new perspectives, challenges, and opportunities in this rapidly evolving field.…”