“Forming” in computer mediated settings: The effect of computer mediated communication on small group development - Anonymised case study primary data collected as transcripts and post-participant questionnaires.

This dataset was produced for the study “‘Forming' in computer-mediated settings: The effect of computer-mediated communication on small group development." The research investigated how face-to-face interaction, video conferencing and synchronous text chat affected task performance and the early interpersonal development of newly formed small groups. The study was situated in the context of sustained remote and hybrid working and used Tuckman’s model of group development as a theoretical framework for examining early team formation. A mixed-methods, multiple-case design was used. Twenty-four participants were randomly allocated to six groups of four, with two groups completing the same collaborative puzzle task under each of three communication conditions: face-to-face, Microsoft Teams video conference and Microsoft Teams text chat. The dataset contains task-completion outcomes and timings, anonymised recordings or chat logs and their transcripts, coded counts of task-related and non-task-related communication, structured post-task questionnaire responses, communication-medium rankings and open-text reflections. Questionnaire measures address interpersonal learning, relationship development, trust and perceived communication effectiveness. The data enabled comparison of both observable group outcomes and participants’ subjective experiences across communication media. The study found that face-to-face groups completed the task more quickly and communicated more efficiently than the computer-mediated groups. Participants in the face-to-face condition also reported significantly greater learning from and about other group members and stronger relationship development. Video conference and text-chat groups showed more limited interpersonal development and required more task-oriented communication. Some increase in trust was reported across all three conditions, but differences in trust development were not statistically significant. The findings suggest that initial or “swift” trust may emerge during short collaborative tasks regardless of medium, while interpersonal learning, relationship formation and task coordination are more sensitive to communication richness and physical co-presence. The study provides exploratory evidence about communication-medium effects during the forming stage of team development. Its cross-sectional design, sample of six groups and use of a single collaborative problem solving task mean that the data should be interpreted as evidence from the cases studied rather than as population-level estimates.