This research asks: what social and organizational factors best support the transition of short-term experiment-focused multidisciplinary virtual scientific collaborations to long-term productive and innovative programs of scientific research? The goal is to develop and validate one or more lifecycle models that support scientific teams through the transition from discrete experiment-focused projects to long-term collaborations, thereby advancing discovery and innovation and increasing productivity.
Researchers at Florida State University will model the lifecycles of virtual multidisciplinary scientific teams using the facilities of the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, an interdisciplinary scientific center with distributed facilities. The model will be built from data collected through descriptive multiple-case studies, grounded in an analysis of social and organizational factors related to the concepts of the theory of information worlds: social norms, social types, values and information behaviors. The researchers hypothesize that when the norms and practices of multiple external worlds represented by team members are integrated into the internal norms and practices of the team itself, the outcomes of the project will be more likely be successful, and team members will be more likely to work in virtual teams again.
Intellectual Merit
The lifecycle model(s) developed in this research are expected to contribute to the advancement of both practical and theoretical knowledge: 1) within the domain of collaborative scientific inquiry, the model(s) will enable virtual multidisciplinary scientific teams to better exploit computer-mediated communication technologies to extend their lifecycles from discrete projects to the long-term programs of research required to solve complex scientific problems; 2) within the domains of social informatics and the science and technology studies, the model(s) will provide framework for implementing a theoretically-informed framework for future research on virtual organizations and sociotechnical systems. The expertise and experience that the principal, co-principal, senior researcher and evaluator bring to this project combine to ensure a rich and multifaceted analysis of a complex and variable situation. Dr. Kathleen Burnett (PI) will oversee all aspects including the students working on the project. Dr. Gary Burnett (co-PI) will contribute expertise in the theory of information worlds and conduct documentary content analysis. Dr. Michelle Kazmer (co-PI) will contribute expertise in the lifecycles of virtual teams, conduct semi-structured interviews, and content analysis. Dr. Besiki Stvilia (Co-PI) will contribute expertise in computational modeling and conduct social network analysis. Dr. Paul Marty (co-PI) will focus on the role of technology in the lifecycle dynamics, and conduct observations of the scientific teams. Dr. Charles C. Hinnant (senior personnel) will contribute expertise in organization theory, and will assist with social network analysis. Dr. Kenneth Fleischman will serve as external evaluator, contributing formative and summative evaluation of the lifecycle models and advising the team on their generalizability to other contexts. Access to the research population and documentary artifacts required for the study is ensured through the cooperation of the Magnet Lab director.
Broader Impacts
The lifecycle model(s) developed in this research will be disseminated broadly to other national laboratories funded by the U.S. government, as well as to private sector scientific collaborations, thus enhancing scientific and technical understanding to promote national scientific productivity and global competitiveness. Two doctoral students and six undergraduate students will be active participants in the research, developing knowledge regarding the lifecycle of virtual teams, and becoming proficient in implementing a variety of social science research techniques such as semi-structured interviewing, observation, social network analysis and content analysis. In addition to the providing educational opportunities for the students participating on the research team, the study’s findings will also inform the broader academic curriculum within the researchers’ university. Several team members have pedagogical interests and responsibilities focused on the behaviors of both individuals and organizations within virtual environments. This study’s findings will be integrated into the content of several undergraduate and graduate courses and will be available for use by the broader academic and practitioner community.