Effectiveness of Electronic Group Brainstorming
Effectiveness of Electronic Group Brainstorming and Social Influences
Christy Baze
Webster University
Organizational Behavior
July 10, 2013
The first article reviewed was entitled “Improving Extreme-Scale Problem Solving: Assessing Electronic Brainstorming Effectiveness in an Industrial Setting” by Courtney C. Dornburg, Susan M. Stevens, Stacey M. L. Hendrickson, and George S. Davidson, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico. The paper was authored in June of 2009. The objective of this paper was to conduct an experiment and report the results of the efforts to compare the effectiveness of group electronic brainstorming versus individual electronic brainstorming to address difficult, real-world challenges (Dornburg et al., 2009). Many such studies have been conducted over the years to determine if group brainstorming is more effective than individual brainstorming and the conclusion is that individual brainstorming creates more and better quality ideas. However, there are not many studies examining larger work groups, 30 or more, with diversity among skill and knowledge levels in an industrial setting. This article aims to determine the best way to leverage EBS (electronic brainstorming) methods within the setting of a national laboratory to evaluate performance within four industrially relevant areas. Because of the ever-increasing use of technology in the workplace, it is imperative that managers understand group dynamics to aid in solving industrially relevant issues and how to apply the right technology to the situation. The group of individuals conducting this research declares that electronic brainstorming has been proposed to reduce the negative effects of group brainstorming and help control costs. Electronic brainstorming should allow for shorter meetings, an increase in participation regardless of the participant’s location, a reduction in costs, and provide for better documentation. The experimental goals of this paper were as
Christy Baze
Webster University
Organizational Behavior
July 10, 2013
The first article reviewed was entitled “Improving Extreme-Scale Problem Solving: Assessing Electronic Brainstorming Effectiveness in an Industrial Setting” by Courtney C. Dornburg, Susan M. Stevens, Stacey M. L. Hendrickson, and George S. Davidson, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico. The paper was authored in June of 2009. The objective of this paper was to conduct an experiment and report the results of the efforts to compare the effectiveness of group electronic brainstorming versus individual electronic brainstorming to address difficult, real-world challenges (Dornburg et al., 2009). Many such studies have been conducted over the years to determine if group brainstorming is more effective than individual brainstorming and the conclusion is that individual brainstorming creates more and better quality ideas. However, there are not many studies examining larger work groups, 30 or more, with diversity among skill and knowledge levels in an industrial setting. This article aims to determine the best way to leverage EBS (electronic brainstorming) methods within the setting of a national laboratory to evaluate performance within four industrially relevant areas. Because of the ever-increasing use of technology in the workplace, it is imperative that managers understand group dynamics to aid in solving industrially relevant issues and how to apply the right technology to the situation. The group of individuals conducting this research declares that electronic brainstorming has been proposed to reduce the negative effects of group brainstorming and help control costs. Electronic brainstorming should allow for shorter meetings, an increase in participation regardless of the participant’s location, a reduction in costs, and provide for better documentation. The experimental goals of this paper were as
References: Dornburg C, Stevens S, Hendrickson S, Davidson G. Improving Extreme-Scale Problem Solving: Assessing Electronic Brainstorming Effectiveness in an Industrial Setting. Human Factors [serial online]. August 2009;51(4):519-527. Available from: Academic Search Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed July 10, 2013. Paulus P, Larey T, Putman V, Leggett K, Roland E. Social Influence Processing in Computer Brainstorming. Basic & Applied Social Psychology [serial online]. March 1996;18(1):3-14. Available from: Academic Search Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed July 10, 2013.