Collaborative Research on Creating Conditions for Virtual Team Effectiveness

在国家科学基金会创新和组织变革计划的支持下，该项目调查了导致虚拟团队有效性的因素。虚拟团队中存在三个主要挑战，它们是有效团队绩效的障碍：--虚拟团队成员独特的思维世界；--成员所代表的组织单位的差异化及其对团队任务的处理方式的相应差异；--成员之间的潜在不信任。研究人员正在调查：(1)对预期结果和实现这些结果的方法的共同理解的发展；(2)跨系统(特别是信息技术)、边界和人员的知识、技能和能力的整合；以及(3)信任的发展。研究人员考察组成虚拟团队的人员的能力，并探索诸如横向工作的能力或对模棱两可的容忍度等属性是否对虚拟团队的成功至关重要。他们将与戴姆勒-克莱斯勒股份公司、惠普公司、美敦力公司、摩托罗拉公司、梅鲁研究公司和洛克希德-马丁公司合作。该项目将突出使虚拟团队有效的因素、流程和经验。这一发现将应用于“学校家庭”(连接小学、初中和高中的虚拟团队)，以及专业教育提供者的虚拟团队。

With support from the National Science Foundation's Innovation and Organizational Change Program, this project investigates the factors that lead to virtual team effectiveness.There are three major challenges in virtual teams that are barriers to effective team performance: -- virtual team members' distinct thought worlds;-- the differentiation of the organizational units members represent and the corresponding differences in their approaches to the team task; -- potential mistrust among members. The researchers are investigating: (1) the development of shared understandings about the desired outcomes and the means to achieve those outcomes; (2) the integration of knowledge, skills, and abilities across systems (particularly information technology), boundaries, and people; and (3) the development of trust.The researchers examine the capabilities of the people that comprise virtual teams and explore whether attributes such as the ability to work laterally or tolerance for ambiguity are critical for virtual team success. They will work with DaimlerChrysler AG, Hewlett Packard, Medtronic, Motorola, Meru Research and Lockheed Martin.The project will highlight the factors, processes and experiences that enable virtual teams to be effective. The findings will be applied to "school families" (virtual teams bridging elementary, middle, and high schools), as well as to virtual teams of providers of specialized educational offerings.