Team adaptation to an unforeseen system failure: Limits of the potential aids of shared knowledge and standardized communication

The present study investigates the potential benefits of a team’s shared knowledge and standardized communication in adapting to an unforeseen change by combining literature on adaptation and team performance. Each of 20 teams performed a dynamic team task and was suddenly confronted with a simulated partial system breakdown. Results show that a methodological framework designed to describe performance adaptation to an unforeseen change in individuals can also be used to model performance adaptation in teams. The system failure was followed by a performance drop and a subsequent period of gradual performance recovery. Accuracy of teams’ shared knowledge correlated positively with performance before and after the change, confirming and extending the literature on shared mental models. However, the amount of knowledge similarity did not aid teams in adapting to the unforeseen system breakdown. In addition, improving teams’ standardized communication had no damping effect on the sudden performance drop and neither helped them during the subsequent recovery period. These results show that even though shared knowledge and efficient communication are of high value to team performance and success, these characteristics are limited in aiding adaptive team performance after unforeseen unique changes that force team members to update their strategies.     

Effect of television viewing on social–emotional competence of young Thai children

Exposure time, program content and cultural context may affect the impact of television (TV) on the social–emotional competence (SEC) of children. This study examined the effects of TV viewing on the SEC of Thai infants. The study was based on a Thai birth cohort study from which duration and content of TV viewing and data from the Modified Infant–Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment instrument at 1 and 3 years of age were available. Generalized estimating equations were used to examine whether scores below the 10th national percentile were associated with TV viewing duration. The relationship between viewing duration and SEC risk was quadratic rather than linear. Viewing duration of 30–120 min/day was associated with a decreased risk of low overall SEC compared to non-viewers after adjustments for confounding factors. However, the beneficial effect diminished when the duration exceeded 120 min/day. Viewing educational programs was associated with a risk reduction of having low overall SEC compared to non-educational programs. These results suggest that a short period of TV viewing may be beneficial for the SEC of Thai infants, especially if the programs are educational.     

Separating the confident from the correct: Leveraging member knowledge in groups to improve decision making and performance

Groups often struggle to distinguish expert members from others who stand out for various reasons but may not be particularly knowledgeable (Littlepage & Mueller, 1997). We examined an intervention designed to improve group decision making and performance through instructing group members to search for information they already possessed that was relevant to a problem. Participants estimated values and expressed their confidence in their estimates individually and then a second time either individually or in a group. This was done with or without the intervention. Results indicated that: (1) groups were more confident than, and out-performed, individuals, (2) group decision making was best captured by models predicting more influence for more accurate members when the intervention was used and more influence for more confident members in its absence, and (3) groups that received the intervention out-performed groups that did not.     

Expertise in soccer teams: A thematic inquiry into the role of Shared Mental Models within team chemistry

AimsThe purpose of the current study was to establish a conceptual framework of team chemistry components in sport with an emphasis on Shared Mental Models (SMM).MethodElite soccer coaches (n = 6) and players (n = 3) were interviewed using a semi-structured interview guide. An inductive thematic analysis was employed to analyze the data.ResultsFour themes related to team chemistry components were identified: (1) members' characteristics (i.e., demographic data, on-field characteristics, and member's ego), (2) coach–players interactions (i.e., professional interaction and emotional intelligence of coaches), (3) interactions among the players (i.e., professional understanding, efficacy beliefs, team cohesion, players' emotional intelligence, team roles, and goals), and (4) interactions with environmental factors (i.e., owners, management, fans, and media).ConclusionsThe cognitive components of the team chemistry model were clustered to establish a conceptual framework of SMM. Furthermore, the cognitive-affective-social-behavioral linkage of team chemistry and athletic performance is examined in light of the emerged model and conceptual framework. Implications and future directions are also discussed.     

An investigation of behaviour and attitudes relevant to the user safety of pedestrian/cyclist shared paths

Bicycle/pedestrian shared paths are an increasingly popular solution to providing cycling infrastructure, despite evidence suggesting safety issues. Improved design and management of shared paths should be informed by understanding of bicyclist and pedestrian behaviour on shared paths, and of relevant safety initiatives (e.g. centreline marking). However, relevant research is lacking. Bicyclist/pedestrian passing events (n = 407) were observed on three relatively busy shared paths in Sydney, Australia – one of them without centreline marking. User characteristics, relevant behaviours and incidents (aggression, near-misses, crashes) were recorded. A tendency toward left-hand travel, as on Australian roads, was stronger for cyclists than for pedestrians, and where centreline was present. Cyclists were often estimated to travel above 10 km/h, a speed limit that has been suggested based on pedestrian safety considerations, but that would be unacceptable for long stretches of commuter cycling. Centreline was associated with lower estimated speeds. Cyclists typically adhered to their responsibility of giving way to pedestrians, but often passed on the left, passed too close, passed without slowing, or passed without warning (e.g. with a bell). Use of mobile telephones and mp3 players is common, particularly amongst pedestrians. Five near collisions were observed, and 53 survey participants reported 2 collisions and 13 near misses. Contributing factors appear to include path users using potentially distracting devices, or straying from the rules of thumb to keep to the left, and to overtake on the right.A survey of cyclists and pedestrians suggested that there are issues with perceptions of space ownership. These results represent an important contribution to the evidence-base for initiatives to improve the safety of shared paths.     

社会称许性反应的测量与控制

社会称许性反应是影响人格测验效度最常见的一种反应偏差,从20世纪30年代至今,测量学家一直努力揭示社会称许性反应的性质和内部结构,并开发社会称许性量表对其直接测量。本文综述了社会称许性量表的发展脉络,指出了至今遗留的问题。并且,从事前控制和事后控制的角度,对当前主要的控制社会称许性反应的方法进行了论述,指出了社会称许性量表的效度对事后控制方法的重要影响,并给出了一些如何控制社会称许性反应的指导建议。     

Shared service centers and professional employability

This paper presents case study evidence of evolutionary changes in business support functions resulting in a fundamental hollowing out of the professional space over time and distance, creating the ‘hourglass’ profession. In an IT-enabled, boundaryless world, many professional activities can now be undertaken, in the manner of the Martini slogan, ‘any time, any place, anywhere’.This paper aims:

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  To investigate the shared service center as an emerging organizational form with the potential to drive fundamental change in the nature and location of professional work.

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  To explore the impact of these changes for individual professional workers, and to highlight the need for a greater focus on individual employability as the driver of an overall career trajectory.

     

From blooming,buzzing confusion to media literacy: The early development of television viewing

Television comprehension is a surprisingly demanding task for very young children. Based on a task analysis of television viewing and review of research, we suggest that by 6 months of age, infants can identify objects and people on screen. By 24 months they can comprehend and imitate simple actions contained in single shots and begin to integrate information across shots. Toddlers nevertheless suffer from the video deficit whereby their comprehension is less than from equivalent real life displays. During the preschool years they learn much of the grammar of filmic montage and can comprehend straightforward narrative productions. Essentially adult comprehension appears to be in place by 13 years of age.     

What Motivates People to Participate More in Community‐based Coalitions?

The purpose of this study was to identify potential opportunities for improving member participation in community-based coalitions. We hypothesized that opportunities for influence and process competence would each foster higher levels of individual member participation. We tested these hypotheses in a sample of 818 members within 79 youth-oriented coalitions. Opportunities for influence were measured as members' perceptions of an inclusive board leadership style and members' reported committee roles. Coalition process competence was measured through member perceptions of strategic board directedness and meeting effectiveness. Members reported three types of participation within meetings as well as how much time they devoted to coalition business beyond meetings. Generalized linear models accommodated clustering of individuals within coalitions. Opportunities for influence were associated with individuals' participation both within and beyond meetings. Coalition process competence was not associated with participation. These results suggest that leadership inclusivity rather than process competence may best facilitate member participation.     

Creative compromise: Syrian television makers between Secularism and Islamism

Dramatic television serials produced in Syria reach vast audiences in the Arab world and beyond, via a growing number of pan-Arab satellite stations owned by wealthy, religiously conservative Gulf Cooperation Council states and citizens. Drama creators must now accommodate new markets and numerous censors. Privatization and the rise of a star system have spurred transformations within the industry that reflect the wider social and political context. The demise of Ba‘th socialism, the failures of nationalism, and the growing strength of Islamism affect both production and consumption of television programs, and transform relations within the industry. This paper explores how the television drama industry both accommodates and resists the Islamist currents that seek to provide alternatives to discredited nationalist and socialist projects.