Measurement of Team Knowledge: Transactive Memory System and Team Mental Models (Track 2, Session 1)
Author(s) :
Natalia Kitaygorodskaya (University of Vaasa, Finland)
Abstract : The paper addresses an issue of measurement of team knowledge. Different views on team knowledge, namely transactive memory system and team mental models, are discussed. Transactive memory system is a concept of a group memory. It consists of individual expertise of team members as well as their knowledge of �who knows what� and is based on communication. Team mental model is a shared organized understanding of team�s environment. Content of team mental models include representations of tasks, situations, working relationships and others. Transactive memory system stresses heterogeneity of task-related knowledge of team members whereas research on team mental models is focused on homogeneity of teammates� knowledge. However homogeneity, namely similar understandings of �who knows what�, is also an important part of transactive memory system. Thus both research streams can benefit from cross-fertilization. In this paper, the emphasis is given to transactive memory system; research on team mental models is considered as supplementary. Building on literature of both research streams, a review of approaches to measurement of team knowledge is presented. It provides several dimensions along which research to date on transactive memory system in organizational settings is assessed. It indicates inconsistency in both definition of transactive memory system and approaches to its measurement. Connection to research on team mental models is also discussed. An example of measurement of team knowledge in a distributed team is provided. Both transactive memory system and team mental model (whose content was teammates� awareness of �who knows what�) were measured. This example revealed contradiction between results of two measures, though, according to theory, they should have converged. Possible explanations of obtained contradiction are given. The paper finishes with the discussion of research gaps identified in literature review and discovered in the example presented.

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