The Mediating Effect of Perceived Task Complexity on Perceived Team Sharedness and Performance

摘要

An empirical study was conducted to observe macro-cognition and interpersonal interactions between teammembers during a collaborative resource management task. Teams consisting of three members each wereinstructed to work together to complete scenario objectives in a simulated military task environment. Thetask scenarios were manipulated to vary the complexity of the scenario objectives. An exploratory analysisof the results revealed a mediating effect of perceived complexity on the relationship between perceivedsharedness and performance. Additionally, a partial mediating effect for perceived complexity on the relationshipbetween perceived sharedness team knowledge building was found. Results indicate that perceivedcomplexity of a collaborative task may play a greater role in the relationship between team level factors andperformance than previously thought. Implications for these results are provided alongside suggestions forfuture research. Specifically, we call for research to determine the mechanism through which perceptions oftask complexity influence collective performance.