Virtual teams, or teams whose members work interdependently across space, time, and organizational boundaries through the use of technology, are the result of the growth of teamwork in organizations and increased geographic dispersion (Lipnack & Stamps, 2000). The primary goal of the current study is to examine whether the media naturalness principle, which is a framework that emphasizes an evolutionary perspective to communication, can be applied to virtual teamwork (Kock, 2001). In addition, the current study addresses some of the limitations found in previous investigations by making several methodological improvements. This longitudinal study compares 54 teams: 22 face-to-face teams, 14 teams using synchronous audioconferencing, and I8 teams using a synchronous chat technology, to assess team processes over three experimental sessions. There was partial support for media naturalness theory, as computer-mediated teams performed as well as face-to-face teams by the second session and there were no differences in levels of trust by time two. However, face-to-face team members reported higher levels of satisfaction and ease of use than computer teams at all three sessions. Findings from this empirical investigation provide a unique theoretical framework and have direct implications for teamwork in both educational and organizational settings.
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