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Building Better Design Teams: Enhancing Group Affinity to Aid Collaborative Design

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Book cover Design Computing and Cognition ’10

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Abstract

This paper discusses ConvoCons, a novel system of conversational icons intended to encourage affinity between collaborators unobtrusively. Using a reification of Bonnie Nardi’s framework for social connection and affinity, ConvoCons overlay an existing application and display a varying media that can encourage collaborating partners to begin developing affinity through informal conversations. This research explores whether dyads working on a collaborative multitouch application with ConvoCons develop more affinity than dyads that do not while solving simple design problems and a freeform design task. Results indicate that after an average of 23.25 minutes, affinity, defined as a function of conversational and behavioral cues, was 40% higher (p < 0.001) in the ConvoCons group than in the control group. This research offers a framework for evaluating affinity within groups and a foundation for exploring software-based methods of improving the effectiveness of collaboration within design teams.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Iowa State University, USA

    Michael A. Oren & Stephen B. Gilbert

Authors
  1. Michael A. Oren
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  2. Stephen B. Gilbert
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study, University Avenue 4400, 22030, Fairfax, Virginia, USA

    John S. Gero

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© 2011 Springer Netherlands

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Oren, M.A., Gilbert, S.B. (2011). Building Better Design Teams: Enhancing Group Affinity to Aid Collaborative Design. In: Gero, J.S. (eds) Design Computing and Cognition ’10. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0510-4_32

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0510-4_32

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-007-0509-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-007-0510-4

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

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