Team Performance Assessment and Measurement

Theory, Methods, and Applications

Michael T. Brannick, Eduardo Salas, Carolyn W. Prince, Michael T. Brannick, Eduardo Salas, Carolyn W. Prince

• Publisher: Psychology Press
• Year: 1997
• Print ISBN: 9780805816389
• eBook ISBN: 9781135693299
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Psychology
• Subtopic: Applied Psychology
• Index: Psychology

This book began at a conference on team performance measurement held at the University of South Florida. Several participants at the conference felt that a book on team performance measurement would be of interest to a broader audience, and they began looking for authors in diverse disciplines. Some of the chapters in this book closely follow material presented at the conference. Many others report work that was done subsequently or was done by authors not present at the conference. The result is a book rich in its diversity of approaches to measurement and which contains illustrations of many different teams. This book is the first of its kind to bring together a collection of scholars and practitioners focusing solely on the problem of team performance measurement. Although much has been written about team and group effectiveness, little theoretical and empirical progress has been made in the measurement of team processes and outcomes. The book represents a major step forward both theoretically and empirically. Section 1 provides a rich theoretical basis for measurement, including designing measures to be used in team training, measures of shared mental models, and measures of team workload. Section 2 addresses methodological developments and issues, including the design and validation of simulations, surveys, and observer checklists. It also deals with issues such as the consistency of team performance and task and level of analysis issues. Section 3 provides applications and illustrations of team performance measures in such teams as nuclear power control room operators, theater technical crews, and aircraft cockpit crews. Section 4 offers guidance for anyone interested in developing their own measures of team performance. There are both theoretical and practical reasons for the current interest in teams. Psychological research interest in groups and teams has returned and is now a thriving area. Self-managed work groups and semi-autonomous work groups have become increasingly common in industry, so there is an increased interest in team functioning from a practical standpoint. This volume's purpose is to describe recent advances in the measurement of team performance, both process and outcome. Several of the chapters provide recommendations on how, when, and why to measure aspects of teams. In addition to describing what is currently known, the book also discusses what remains to be known and what needs to be done next. The book is intended primarily for those interested in research about team processes and outcomes--researchers and academics who possess a basic understanding of statistics and psychometrics. The bulk of research reported has applied aims which provide much practical information, such as how to design simulations, rating forms, and dimensions of team performance useful for feedback to many kinds of teams. In addition, there are examples from several different kinds of teams, including aircrews, nuclear power plant operators, hospital workers, ship combat information center groups, and theater technicians. Therefore the book should be useful to people who want to design measures to evaluate teams.

V
REFLECTIONS

15
Principles for Measuring Teamwork: A Summary and Look Toward the Future

David P.Baker

University of Central Florida

Eduardo Salas

Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division, Orlando

INTRODUCTION

Teams and, as a result, team performance measurement have received an increasing amount of attention since the 1980s (e.g., Driskell & Salas, 1991; Dyer, 1984; Foushee, 1984; Salas, Bowers, and Cannon-Bowers, 1995). There have been numerous articles on teams (see Dyer, 1984; Salas et al., 1995 for comprehensive reviews of the literature), and a number of books have been published that specifically address critical issues related to team performance (see for example, Guzzo & Salas, 1995; Swezey & Salas, 1992; Wiener, Kanki, & Helmreich, 1993). It goes without saying that teamwork has become a critical element of virtually almost all organizations.

For example, in the airline industry, team training is an integral part of pilot training (referred to as Crew Resource Management training), and in the future, team performance will be evaluated along with technical performance under the new Advanced Qualifications Program (AQP; Birnbach & Longridge, 1993). However, even with this increased emphasis on teams, we contend that there is still much to be learned about the measurement of team performance. This book documents a significant body of work that has been conducted in an attempt to understand the measurement process. It provides great insight with respect to both team performance measurement theory and outlines a number of applications and evaluations of team performance measures.

The goals of the present chapter are twofold. First, we review a series of principles for measuring team performance that we previously proposed (Baker & Salas, 1992). These principles raised a number of issues for guiding research, so our intention is to assess the extent to which these questions have been addressed through the research presented here. Second, on the basis of our earlier principles and the chapters presented, we propose a series of updated principles for team performance measurement. We hope that these principles serve as a vehicle for constructing actual team performance measurement tools as well as guiding future research in this area.

TEAMS AND TEAM PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT

We begin by documenting why team performance measurement research is important. First we define what a team is. We recognize that numerous definitions of a team have been proposed. We simply feel that it is important that readers have a common frame of reference for our discussion.

What Is a Team?

Throughout the chapters in this book, there has been a shared understanding of what defines a team and what the important characteristics of teamwork are. To summarize, teams consist of, at a minimum, two or more individuals. These individuals have specific role assignments, must perform specific tasks (i.e., taskwork), and must interact or coordinate (i.e., teamwork) to achieve a common goal or outcome (Dyer, 1984; Morgan, Glickman, Woodard, Blaiwes, & Salas, 1986; Salas, Dickinson, Converse, & Tannenbaum, 1992). In addition, teams make decisions (Orasanu & Salas, 1993), have specialized knowledge and skills (Cannon-Bowers, Tannenbaum, Salas, & Volpe, 1995), and often work under conditions of high workload (Bowers, Braun, & Morgan, chapter 5, this volume; Orasanu & Salas, 1993). Finally, teams can be distinguished from small groups (Brannick & Prince, chapter 1, this volume), because teams have unique requirements for coordination and task interdependency. Teamwork characteristically involves team members adjusting to each other either sequentially or simultaneously in order to achieve team goals (Dickinson & McIntyre, chapter 2, this volume).

As documented here, in the area of team research, it is safe to conclude that there is a shared understanding of the variables that define a team. This is important from the standpoint of team performance measurement because it sets boundaries on what constitutes a team (e.g., such as the interdependency among team members), and it defines variables with respect to team inputs, team processes, and team outcomes that should be accounted for in the measurement process. Essentially, it tells us what to measure when assessing team performance and presents a foundation on which to construct team performance measurement tools.

Why Is Measurement Important?

In chapter 1, Brannick and Prince note that capturing, defining, and measuring the interactions that are characteristic of teamwork are basic to our ability to understand the meaning of teamwork. In other words, team performance measurement research will contribute to our comprehension of the processes that define teamwork. Brannick, A.Prince, Salas, and C. Prince (1993a) outlined three reasons why team performance measurement is important. First, team theory cannot move beyond the conceptual stage without the development of psychometrically sound measurement tools. Measurement, in and of itself, will contribute to the building and validating of accurate models of teamwork. Second, without quantifiable indicators of team performance, it is hard to determine what constitutes good and poor teamwork. Such information is particularly important fr...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Foreword
• Preface
• I: Overview
• II: Theoretical Developments
• III: Methodological Developments and Issues
• IV: Applications
• V: Reflections