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Problem Solving and Decision Making in Groups 281

Using Technology to Help a Group’s Problem Solving
and Decision Making
In the last two decades, group use of computer technology to assist group work in
general and problem solving in particular has increased dramatically and become
more sophisticated. The issue, as we pointed out in Chapter 1, is no longer whether a
group meets entirely face-to-face or online: most groups use computer technology to
some degree. For instance, face-to-face groups can use e-mail and chat rooms to keep
in contact socially and discuss their work. They can upload written documents (such
as agendas, minutes, notes, reports, and research) using, for example, a virtual Drop-
box so geographically dispersed members can access and respond to the documents.
Wikis, mentioned in Chapter 2, also permit multi-authored writing as members simul-
taneously create, write, analyze, and edit documents. We described in Chapter 8 a
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popular online tool called Wiggio (www.wiggio.com/) that can be used by both virtual
and face-to-face groups for their work. In addition, some groups use computer tech-
nology as the sole means by which they interact with each other. Virtual groups exist
because the sophisticated computer technology allows them to coordinate work even
though they never meet face-to-face.
Groups use computer technology on two levels. First, as described earlier, groups
use computer tools to conduct group business. Second, face-to-face and virtual groups
use specially designed computer software for group problem solving. We now take a
look at both uses, starting with basic tools.

General Tools
Instant messaging (IM), discussed in Chapter 8, is popular with virtual groups and
allows members’ rapid-fire messaging, compared to e-mail and voice mail messaging.
An IM user clicks on the name of another user’s IM handle to begin an immediate
interchange. Instant messaging is used for fast, short messages and allows members to
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talk to each other during conference calls. Kathy’s brother manages a telephone
command center for a major healthcare company. He related that during a recent
conference call with another manager, a strange “pop” sounded during the call. Her
brother was IM’d by another manager, during the call, asking him about the strange
noise. They learned that another manager had been chewing and popping his gum
during the call. Instant messaging gives members easy access to one another during
conference calls, but interchanges are not documented, so group work cannot be
archived. However, bulletin board and chat room messaging can be recorded and later
retrieved.
Instructors use asynchronous electronic bulletin board services (BBS) and syn-
chronous chat room environments, like the Internet Relay Chat (IRC), to facilitate
classroom learning. These tools are also a part of Blackboard platforms and services
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such as Wiggio (www.wiggio.com/). In the classroom context, these technological
tools let teachers and students talk to each other, help them equalize participation,
increase student self-responsibility, show differing perspectives, allow thoughtful con-
sideration of message ideas, and train students to use these tools in their future
professions. 43

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