Using a computer-based tool to support collaboration

International Journal of e- …, 2009

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Abstract: The research field Computer-Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW) is concerned with understanding social interaction and the design, development, and evaluation of technical systems supporting social interaction in teams and communities–or in other words it is about researching the use of computer-based technology for supporting collaboration. The field was coined in the 1980th by researchers from computer science, information science and social science.

Proceedings of the 2004 conference on Human factors in computing systems - CHI '04, 2004

2006

ABSTRACT We introduce the idea of considering computer supported collaborative work as a complex adaptive system (CAS). In other disciplines, such as physics, biology and ecology, the idea of a CAS has proven useful in explaining a wide variety of phenomena. We define a CAS and then describe how CSCW fits that definition.

2010

Collaboration is and always has been a central fact or for project success. In times of international projects and virtual team environments collaboration is more imp ortant than ever. Technology can help overcome geo graphical boundaries to achieve collaboration. Indeed, techn ology has become an enabler of communication and collaboration. And yet collaboration is not about technology. It is about people and human interacti ons. Technology can enable, facilitate and promote colla boration. Provided we are aware of the limitations and possible pitfalls of introducing collaboration tools. This paper identifies possible pitfalls. And it lays ou t a roadmap how to overcome them and successfully introduce collaborat ion tools - without becoming slaves of our own coll aboration tools.

Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 2015

In the last decades, the fast growth of Information and Communication Technologies changed our way to communicate and share information. Traditional groups or teams frequently give way to virtual teams, working with tools for online collaboration. Interaction between persons geographically dispersed has become easier. However, the use of new collaboration tools can also bring many challenges. Some technologies, like e-mail, can create delays on reply or even misunderstandings, case the message is not well understood by the recipient. Can these new technologies improve the productivity and enhance the creativity between group members, improving also their confidence and motivation? Although virtual teams have a high capacity to adapt to constant market changes, personal interactions are still important, mainly to clarify tasks and goals. The main purpose of this study is to understand how tools for online collaboration may improve the productivity (and enhance creativity) in teamwork. This study was conducted through an internet platform and the survey was hosted online by SurveyMonkey.com. We intended to verify, among other questions, what users think about different collaboration tools, how often they use these tools, and how they perceive these technologies as adequate ways to communicate, to work with, and to improve productivity. Findings show that e-mail is the most used tool, and personal contact is still more important for teamwork than any tools for online collaboration. Our results contribute to perceive in what extent collaboration tools are indeed an asset or a barrier in teamwork.

NOKOBIT'98, 1998

Introduction of computer support for cooperative work (CSCW) is often reported as failures, and a number of studies have aimed to explain the mistakes. Many refer to lack of understanding the technological possibilities due to bad information and training. This article aims to discuss "failures of CSCW use" by other characteristics than lack of training or badly planned introduction processes by referring to the mutual interaction between technology and organisation. The discussion is based on findings from a series of studies of use and development of Lotus Notes applications in Norwegian organisations. The article tries to argue that some aspects of CSCW are inherent in the way that the technology is used because of its technological possibilities, and that these can be expected to be present in any organisation. These aspects are discussed as contradictions: individual/collective, (collective) tool/(individual) work task, management/performance, and tradition/development. On the basis of the contradictions, three problems that have to do with the process of mutual interaction or adjustment between technology and organisation are discussed: Defining the collective, The individual becomes more important, and The process of "grouping". The process of transforming individually oriented work to cooperative work that fits the technology is hard and contradictory, even if it seems to be easy and nice to start cooperating and sharing with each other.

Journal of Biomedical Informatics, 2004

Many information systems have failed when deployed into complex health-care settings. We believe that one cause of these failures is the difficulty in systematically accounting for the collaborative and exception-filled nature of medical work. In this methodological review paper, we highlight research from the field of computer-supported cooperative work (CSCW) that could help biomedical informaticists recognize and design around the kinds of challenges that lead to unanticipated breakdowns and eventual abandonment of their systems. The field of CSCW studies how people collaborate with each other and the role that technology plays in this collaboration for a wide variety of organizational settings. Thus, biomedical informaticists could benefit from the lessons learned by CSCW researchers. In this paper, we provide a focused review of CSCW methods and ideas-we review aspects of the field that could be applied to improve the design and deployment of medical information systems. To make our discussion concrete, we use electronic medical record systems as an example medical information system, and present three specific principles from CSCW: accounting for incentive structures, understanding workflow, and incorporating awareness.

Zagadnienia Naukoznawstwa, 2022

In recent years, the majority of studies on new technology-related phenomena have focused either on proving the benefits of innovative solutions or on criticizing social costs. The path chosen in the reviewed book Collaborative Society by Dariusz Jemielniak and Aleksandra Przegalinska is to capture a wider cultural shift that is taking place because ICT (Information and Communication Technology) tools allow people to take advantage of their willingness to cooperate. The key thesis is that the collaborative society goes far beyond the sharing economy-or economy in general. New means of digital communication, remix culture and citizen science prove that this shift is transforming social relations and our mutual relations. The authors search for the manifestations of a collaborative society in joint online production and consumption, cooperation of social activists and hacktivism, social production of knowledge, gadgets encouraging cooperation and subversive connection in digital spaces. The future of cooperation is a story about the tension between the new, communal mode of production and its distortion by capitalism. The book is a good summary of the research area and an introduction for anyone looking to explore this topic or participate in a collaborative society.

The promise of globally networked computers to usher in a new age of universal learning and of the sharing of human knowledge remains a distant dream; the software and social practices needed have yet to be designed and adopted. To support online collaborative learning, working and acting, our technology and culture have to be re-configured to meet a complex set of constraints. Above all, this requires understanding how digital technology can mediate human collaboration.