Negative affect reduces team awareness: the effects of mood and stress on computer-mediated team communication

Naturalistic observations of multiteam interaction networks: Implications for cognition in crisis management teams

Interaction has been recognised as an essential lens to understand how cognition is formed in a complex adaptive team such as a multidisciplinary crisis management team (CMT). However, little is known about how interactions within and across CMTs give rise to the multi-team system's overall cognitive functioning, which is essential to avoid breakdowns in coordination. To address this gap, we characterise and compare the component CMTs' role-as-intended (RAI) and role-as-observed (RAO) in adapting to the complexity of managing informational needs. To characterise RAI, we conducted semi-structured interviews with subject matter experts and then made a qualitative synthesis using a thematic analysis method. To characterise RAO, we observed multiteam interaction networks in real-time at a simulated training environment and then analysed the component CMTs' relative importance using node centrality measures. The resulting inconsistencies between RAI and RAO imply the need to investigate cognition in multiple CMTs through the lens of interaction.Practitioner summary: When a disaster occurs, multidisciplinary CMTs are expected to serve their roles as described in written or verbal guidelines. However, according to our naturalistic observations of multiteam interaction networks, such descriptions may be (necessary but) insufficient for designing, training, and evaluating CMTs in the complexity of managing informational needs together.

A Multilevel Review of Curvilinear Effects on the Creative Work of Teams

Their positive potential often diminishes or even turns negative when antecedents of creativity are taken too far. Despite empirical evidence supporting such curvilinear effects on important outcomes of creative work at the individual and team levels, their theorizing remains rather incomplete, with more attention being paid to explaining the curves’ upward rather than downward slopes. By developing a multilevel antecedent-benefit-cost (ABC) framework that synthesizes 120 quantitative-empirical studies on curvilinear effects, this review guides creativity and innovation literature toward conceptual clarity and methodological precision across levels. This is important because the cost-related mechanisms of certain antecedents are still not well understood.

How Personality and Communication Patterns Affect Online ad-hoc Teams Under Pressure

Critical, time-bounded, and high-stress tasks, like incident response, have often been solved by teams that are cohesive, adaptable, and prepared. Although a fair share of the literature has explored the effect of personality on various other types of teams and tasks, little is known about how it contributes to teamwork when teams of strangers have to cooperate ad-hoc, fast, and efficiently. This study explores the dynamics between 120 crowd participants paired into 60 virtual dyads and their collaboration outcome during the execution of a high-pressure, time-bound task. Results show that the personality trait of Openness to experience may impact team performance with teams with higher minimum levels of Openness more likely to defuse the bomb on time. An analysis of communication patterns suggests that winners made more use of action and response statements. The team role was linked to the individual's preference of certain communication patterns and related to their perception of the collaboration quality. Highly agreeable individuals seemed to cope better with losing, and individuals in teams heterogeneous in Conscientiousness seemed to feel better about collaboration quality. Our results also suggest there may be some impact of gender on performance. As this study was exploratory in nature, follow-on studies are needed to confirm these results. We discuss how these findings can help the development of AI systems to aid the formation and support of crowdsourced remote emergency teams.

A Multilevel Study of Group Affective Tone and Team Innovation: A Moderated Mediation Model

Drawing on broaden-and-build theory and threat-rigidity hypothesis, we theorized and tested a multilevel model to examine the moderating effects of transformational leadership (TFL) on the team-level process that links positive/negative group affective tone (PGAT/NGAT) to team innovation via information elaboration. Data were collected from 299 team members and 65 leaders from Taiwanese companies at two time points. The multilevel path analysis demonstrated support for a positive indirect effect of PGAT on team innovation via information elaboration and a negative indirect effect of NGAT on team innovation via information elaboration. The positive indirect effect of PGAT on team innovation via information elaboration was found to be stronger when TFL was high rather than low. However, TFL did not attenuate the negative effects of NGAT. Negative group affective tone was negatively related to information elaboration when TFL was high, whereas NGAT had no significant relationship with information elaboration when TFL was low. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

PASS: A Multimodal Database of Physical Activity and Stress for Mobile Passive Body/ Brain-Computer Interface Research

With the burgeoning of wearable devices and passive body/brain-computer interfaces (B/BCIs), automated stress monitoring in everyday settings has gained significant attention recently, with applications ranging from serious games to clinical monitoring. With mobile users, however, challenges arise due to other overlapping (and potentially confounding) physiological responses (e.g., due to physical activity) that may mask the effects of stress, as well as movement artifacts that can be introduced in the measured signals. For example, the classical increase in heart rate can no longer be attributed solely to stress and could be caused by the activity itself. This makes the development of mobile passive B/BCIs challenging. In this paper, we introduce PASS, a multimodal database of Physical Activity and StresS collected from 48 participants. Participants performed tasks of varying stress levels at three different activity levels and provided quantitative ratings of their perceived stress and fatigue levels. To manipulate stress, two video games (i.e., a calm exploration game and a survival game) were used. Peripheral physical activity (electrocardiography, electrodermal activity, breathing, skin temperature) as well as cerebral activity (electroencephalography) were measured throughout the experiment. A complete description of the experimental protocol is provided and preliminary analyses are performed to investigate the physiological reactions to stress in the presence of physical activity. The PASS database, including raw data and subjective ratings has been made available to the research community at http://musaelab.ca/pass-database/. It is hoped that this database will help advance mobile passive B/BCIs for use in everyday settings.

Cognition in crisis management teams: an integrative analysis of definitions

In large-scale extreme events, multidisciplinary crisis management teams (CMTs) are required to function together cognitively. Despite theoretical maturity in team cognition and recurrent emphasis on cognition in the crisis management practices, no synthesis of theoretical and practical discourses is currently available, limiting empirical investigations of cognition in CMTs. To address this gap, this paper aims to review the definitions of cognition in CMTs, with a particular focus on examining if and to what extent they are diversified. Through a systematic process to search peer-reviewed journal articles published in English from 1990 to 2019, 59 articles were selected with 62 coded definitions of 11 different constructs. The similarities and variabilities of the definitions were examined in terms of their theoretical and practical emphases and then synthesised into an integrative definition expected to serve as a general guide of reference for future researchers seeking an operational definition of cognition in CMTs. Practitioner summary: Understanding of cognition in CMTs is grounded in various theories and models with varying assumptions. An integrative conceptualisation of such cognition as interaction within and across CMTs to perceive, diagnose, and adapt to the crisis may facilitate the accumulation of knowledge and future operationalisations. Abbreviations: CMT(s): crisis management team(s); SMM: shared mental model; TMM: team mental model; COP: common operating picture; SSA: shared situation awareness; TSA: team situation awareness; DC: distributed cognition; ITC: interactive team cognition; TMS: transitive memory system(s); DSA: distributed situation awareness.

Incivility and Clinical Performance, Teamwork, and Emotions: A Randomized Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND

Incivility has been identified as a common occurrence in health care settings. While anecdotal evidence exists that these behaviors negatively impact patient care, more robust evidence is lacking.

PURPOSE

This randomized controlled trial investigated the effects of exposure to incivility on clinical performance, teamwork, and emotions.

METHODS

Teams of nurses were randomly assigned to a control or experimental group. The experimental group was exposed to incivility. Both groups were then prompted to perform basic life support on a high-fidelity manikin. Teams were scored on cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) performance and teamwork. Individuals completed measures of affect and a cognitive test.

RESULTS

There were no differences in CPR, cognitive or teamwork scores, or emotional state. However, 66% of the experimental group had a major error in their CPR performance. None of the control groups made the same error.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings support anecdotal evidence that exposure to incivility may contribute to errors in clinical performance.

The impact of team characteristics and context on team communication: An integrative literature review

Many studies on teams report measures of team communication; however, these studies vary widely in terms of the team characteristics, situations, and tasks studied making it difficult to understand impacts on team communication more generally. The objective of this review is systematically summarize relationships between measures of team communication and team characteristics and situational contexts. A literature review was conducted searching in four electronic databases (PsycINFO, MEDLINE, Ergonomics Abstracts, and SocINDEX). Additional studies were identified by cross-referencing. Articles included for final review had reported at least one team communication measure associated with some team and/or context dimension. Ninety-nine of 727 articles met the inclusion criteria. Data extracted from articles included characteristics of the studies and teams and the nature of each of the reported team and/or context dimensions-team communication properties relationships. Some dimensions (job role, situational stressors, training strategies, cognitive artifacts, and communication media) were found to be consistently linked to changes in team communication. A synthesized diagram that describes the possible associations between eleven team and context dimensions and nine team communication measures is provided along with research needs.

Improving Pediatric Rapid Response Team Performance Through Crew Resource Management Training of Team Leaders

BACKGROUND

Rapid response teams (RRTs) improve the detection of and response to deteriorating patients. Professional hierarchies and the multidisciplinary nature of RRTs hinder team performance. This study assessed whether an intervention involving crew resource management training of team leaders could improve team performance.

METHODS

In situ observations of RRT activations were performed pre- and post-training intervention. Team performance and dynamics were measured by observed adherence to an ideal task list and by the Team Emergency Assessment Measure tool, respectively. Multiple quartile (median) and logistic regression models were developed to evaluate change in performance scores or completion of specific tasks.

RESULTS

Team leader and team introductions (40% to 90%, P = .004; 7% to 45%, P = .03), floor team presentations in Situation Background Assessment Recommendation format (20% to 65%, P = .01), and confirmation of the plan (7% to 70%, P = .002) improved after training in patients transferred to the ICU (n = 35). The Team Emergency Assessment Measure metric was improved in all 4 categories: leadership (2.5 to 3.5, P < .001), teamwork (2.7 to 3.7, P < .001), task management (2.9 to 3.8, P < .001), and global scores (6.0 to 9.0, P < .001) for teams caring for patients who required transfer to the ICU.

CONCLUSIONS

Targeted crew resource management training of the team leader resulted in improved team performance and dynamics for patients requiring transfer to the ICU. The intervention demonstrated that training the team leader improved behavior in RRT members who were not trained.

The Effect of Mood on Performance in a Nonnormal Situation

Abstract. The effect of mood on performance in everyday situations is widely studied and the results commonly reveal a mood-congruence relationship. However, little is known about the effect of mood on performance in nonnormal situations such as those experienced during an unscheduled event. This study investigated whether induced mood (positive or negative) influenced performance during an unscheduled aircraft evacuation. Forty-five participants (15 female), with an average age of 21.90 (SD = 3.96) years, were randomly exposed to either positive or negative mood facilitation. Following this, all participants watched the same preflight safety video, and then had to conduct an unscheduled evacuation following a simulated water ditching. Participants exposed to a positive mood manipulator were found to commit fewer errors during the evacuation exercise and completed the evacuation in less than half of the time taken by participants who were exposed to a negative mood manipulator. In safety-critical environments such as aviation, these results highlight the advantages of creating an atmosphere or environment that induces positive moods.

Operational assessment of the 5-h on/10-h off watchstanding schedule on a US Navy ship: sleep patterns, mood and psychomotor vigilance performance of crewmembers in the nuclear reactor department

We assessed sleep patterns, psychomotor vigilance performance, work demands and mood of 77 crewmembers of USS NIMITZ (CVN-68) on the rotating 5-h on/10-h off (5/10) watchstanding schedule. Within the 3-day cycle of the 5/10, sleep occurred at distinctly different times each day. On two of these days, sailors typically received only brief, 4-h sleep episodes followed by periods of sustained wakefulness (approximately 22 and 20 h). Crewmembers received approximately seven hours of sleep daily, but reported excessive fatigue and dissatisfaction with their schedule. Crewmembers' mood worsened significantly over the course of the underway phase. Psychomotor vigilance performance (reaction times, lapses) was significantly degraded compared to performance when working circadian-aligned schedules. Overall, standing watch on the 5/10 schedule, combined with other work duties, resulted in poor sleep hygiene. Crewmembers on the 5/10 experienced periodic bouts of sustained wakefulness and accrued a significant sleep debt due to extended workdays and circadian-misaligned sleep. Practitioner summary: We assessed crewmembers' sleep patterns, psychomotor vigilance performance and work demands when working a rotating 5-h on/10-h off (5/10) watchstanding schedule. The 5/10, combined with other work duties, resulted in poor sleep hygiene. Crewmembers experienced periodic bouts of sustained wakefulness and accrued a significant sleep debt due to extended workdays and circadian-misaligned sleep.

Comparison of Two Watch Schedules for Personnel at the White House Military Office President's Emergency Operations Center

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to assess effectiveness of an alternative, 24-hr-on/72-hr-off watchstanding schedule on sleep and morale of personnel assigned to the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC).

BACKGROUND

As part of the White House Military Office, PEOC personnel historically worked a 12-hr "Panama" watch schedule. Personnel reported experiencing chronic insufficient and disrupted sleep patterns and sought advice for improving their watchstanding schedule.

METHOD

Participants (N = 14 active-duty military members, ages 29 to 42 years) completed the Profile of Mood State (POMS) three times: before, during, and after switching to the alternative schedule with 5-hr sleep periods built into their workday. Participants completed a poststudy questionnaire to assess individual schedule preferences. Sleep was measured actigraphically, supplemented by activity logs.

RESULTS

As indicated by POMS scores, mood improved significantly on the new schedule. Although average total sleep amount did not change substantively, the timing of sleep was more consistent on the new schedule, resulting in better sleep hygiene. PEOC personnel overwhelmingly preferred the new schedule, reporting not only that they felt more rested but that the new schedule was more conducive to the demands of family life.

CONCLUSIONS

Demands of family life and time spent commuting were found to be critical factors for acceptance of the alternative schedule. This new schedule will be most effective if personnel adhere to the scheduled rest periods assigned during their 24-hr duty.

APPLICATION

A successful schedule should avoid conflicts between social life and operational demands. Results may lead to changes in the work schedules of other departments with similar 24/7 responsibilities.

Short Stress State Questionnaire

Conscious appraisals of stress, or stress states, are an important aspect of human performance. This article presents evidence supporting the validity and measurement characteristics of a short multidimensional self-report measure of stress state, the Short Stress State Questionnaire (SSSQ; Helton, 2004 ). The SSSQ measures task engagement, distress, and worry. A confirmatory factor analysis of the SSSQ using data pooled from multiple samples suggests the SSSQ does have a three factor structure and post-task changes are not due to changes in factor structure, but to mean level changes (state changes). In addition, the SSSQ demonstrates sensitivity to task stressors in line with hypotheses. Different task conditions elicited unique patterns of stress state on the three factors of the SSSQ in line with prior predictions. The 24-item SSSQ is a valid measure of stress state which may be useful to researchers interested in conscious appraisals of task-related stress.

Trust tokens in team development

Purpose

– Computer-mediated communication systems (CMCSs) have become the standard for supporting virtual teamwork. However, interpersonal trust formation though CMCSs is impaired due to limited media richness of the communication channels. The aim of this paper is to identify trust forming cues that occur naturally in face-to-face environments and are suitable to include in CMCSs design, to facilitate greater trust in virtual teams.

Design/methodology/approach

– To select cues that had a strong effect on fostering trust behaviour, a non-participatory ethnographic study was conducted. Two student teams at the University of Waterloo were observed for 6-12 months. Researchers identified mechanisms used for building trust and bridging team developmental barriers.

Findings

– The paper identifies five trust tokens that were effective in developing trust and bridging team developmental barriers: expertise, recommendations, social capital, willingness to help/benevolence, and validation of information. These behavioural cues, or behavioural trust tokens, which are present in face-to-face collaborations, carry important trust supporting information that leads to increased trust, improved collaboration, and knowledge integration. These tokens have the potential to improve CMCSs by supplementing the cues necessary for trust formation in virtual environments.

Practical implications

– This study identifies important mechanisms used for fostering trust behaviour in face-to-face collaborations that have the potential to be included in the design of CMCSs (via interface design objects) and have implications for interface designers, team managers, and researchers in the field of teamwork.

Originality/value

– This work presents the first ethnographic study of trust between team members for the purpose of providing improved computer support for virtual collaboration via redesigned interface components.

Commentary: how can technology help us understand the communication process?

In this commentary, the author reflects on the articles chosen for the special section on communications analysis. These articles problematize communication and raise an interesting set of questions for both human factors and communication scholars to ponder. In the end, both sets of scholars seek the same goal: How do we better examine communication to improve it? Problematizing communication requires scholars to challenge their fundamental assumptions about the phenomenon as well as to tease out the distinctions of methodological approaches typically used by both human factors and communication scholars. Human factors scholars tend to favor forms of communication in which technology or task roles control who can communicate and how. Communication scholars tend to favor contexts in which information flows more freely with fewer explicit restrictions. Creating opportunities to collaborate in research on the communication process may create the best understanding of technology that can better serve our understanding of communication.