Development of Group Cognition in Online Collaborative Problem-Solving Processes

Group cognition is a cognitive science concept that studies how groups think, learn, and work. Most research investigates group cognition as a qualitative-oriented phenomenon. From a quantitative perspective, this research proposes a measure equation of group cognition, conducts empirical research during online collaborative problem-solving, and uses multiple quantitative methods to examine group cognition complemented with qualitative microanalysis. Specifically, social network analysis, behavioral pattern analysis, and quantitative content analysis are used to measure three groups’ group cognition. Results show that only one group successfully develops group cognition through synergistic coordination of social, behavioral, and cognitive activities. Students in the other two groups either take separate responsibilities to cooperate or have unequal participations, which indicates an inadequacy of group cognition. The extent that three groups develop group cognition is consistent with the order of groups’ final performance scores. Research analytical and pedagogical implications are provided to advance research and practice of group cognition.

Learning as cognition: a developmental process for organizational learning

Purpose The aim of this article is to present a viewpoint from learning as individual and group cognition for the benefit of organization learning scholarship. Design/methodology/approach Conceptual viewpoint of the author. Findings The results demonstrate that perspective of intentionality is important for understanding how learning as cognition develops into organizational learning. Practical implications Organizations that recognize perspective as the agency by which learning as cognition develops organizational learning have a better opportunity to remain competitive. Originality/value This paper provides a basis to advance understanding on how perspective influences learning as cognition as a developmental process for organizational learning.

The Problem of Political Ignorance

This chapter turns to the problem that political ignorance poses for democratic public discourse. It is often held (1) that ordinary citizens know too little to engage competently in public debates about politics and (2) that, because of the influence of group identity on political beliefs (or ‘group cognition’), this problematic ignorance is here to stay. The chapter argues that this influential worry fails, because it misunderstands the epistemic function of social group identities. The experiences involved in being a member of a particular social group are epistemically useful for deciding whose political judgment and what political information to trust. This is true even when it comes to scientific questions that bear on political issues, and even when people are dogmatically committed to their group perspectives. So, group cognition constitutes a useful tool for managing and overcoming political ignorance—and, by extension, for defusing the threat it raises for public discourse.

Timing Differences: Discursive Diversity and Team Performance

How does cognitive diversity in a group affect its performance? Prior research suggests that cognitive diversity poses a performance tradeoff: diverse groups excel at creativity and innovation but struggle to take coordinated action. Building on the insight that group cognition is not static but is instead dynamically and interactively produced, we develop a novel conceptualization of group cognitive diversity—discursive diversity, or the degree to which the semantic meanings expressed by group members diverge from one another at a given point in time. We propose that the relationship between this time-varying measure of group cognition and team performance varies as a function of task type: discursive diversity enhances performance when groups are engaged in ideational tasks but impedes performance when they perform coordination tasks. Using the tools of computational linguistics to derive a measure of discursive diversity, and drawing on a novel longitudinal data set of intragroup electronic communications, group members’ demographic traits, and performance outcomes for 117 remote software development teams on an online platform (Gigster), we find support for our theory. These results suggest that the performance tradeoff of group cognitive diversity is not inescapable: Groups can circumvent it by modulating discursive diversity to match their task requirements.