A comparison of team training strategies for team effectiveness

This research examined team training strategies that contribute to team-level cognitive and behavioral outcomes. Participants were three-person teams (n = 63) trained to perform a highly interdependent, multiplayer computer videogame (Red Alert). In a 2 x 2 between-subjects design, team members learned more or less about one another's roles (high or low interpositional training) and how to work together---collaborate and coordinate---more or less (high or low interactional training). The effects of team training were measured on changes in shared mental models and changes in team behavioral processes measured during transition and action phases of performance as described in the Marks, Mathieu, and Zaccaro (2001) taxonomy of team processes. Findings support the notion that different team training methods have different effects on training criteria. Results found direct effects of interpositional training on shared mental models and transition processes, along with direct effects of interactional training on transition and action processes. This research also indicates a mediated pattern among team training outcomes, where mental models contribute to transition processes, which contribute to action processes necessary for performance effectiveness.