James E Driskell

Florida Maxima Corporation

Fluid teams are teams whose members are drawn from various technical domains or organizational divisions and assembled to undertake a critical, time-limited task. Members of these teams are rapidly assembled, have no prior familiarity or experience working together, must begin work immediately to accomplish the task, and then cease to exist followi...

The need exists to better understand how to comprise fluid teams—teams that are assembled on short notice, from members with little to no familiarity, who come together to carry out a time-limited task, and then disband. Due to the ever-increasing complexity of the modern workplace, the demand for these types of fluid teams is growing in task domai...

Fluid teams are teams that are rapidly assembled from across disciplines or areas of expertise to address a near-term problem. They are typically composed of individuals who have no prior familiarity with one another, who as a team must begin work immediately, and who disband at the completion of the task. Prior research has noted the challenges po...

Numerous contemporary work teams encompass both virtuality, marked by geographically dispersed members relying on technology for communication, and fluidity, involving the rapid assembly of members with limited prior experience for immediate, time-sensitive tasks. Instances include global virtual teams, military command and control teams, and simil...

Driskell, J. E., & Driskell, T. (2013). Gathering information in field settings: A social dynamics approach. The Military Psychologist, 28, 9-13.

Introduction The ability to perform optimally under pressure is critical across many occupations, including the military, first responders, and competitive sport. Despite recognition that such performance depends on a range of cognitive factors, how common these factors are across performance domains remains unclear. The current study sought to int...

Recognizing the increased stressors present in today’s organizations, work on team resilience has been increasing over the past several years. While multiple definitions of team resilience abound, a recent review by Chapman and colleagues (2020) argued that the two most prevalent are: (1) “the capacity to bounce back from failure, setbacks, conflic...

The ability to perform optimally under pressure is critical across many occupations, including the military, first responders, and competitive sport, and depends on a range of cognitive factors. How common these key performance factors are across application domains remains unclear. The current study sought to integrate existing knowledge in the pe...

Objective We describe a methodology that provides a nonobtrusive means of detecting stress and related deficits through the assessment of spontaneous verbal output in ongoing communications. Background In high-demand environments, operational personnel are exposed to an array of environmental, task, and interpersonal stressors that can negatively...

Risk. Complexity. Technical demands. Communication difficulties. Interpersonal demands. Confinement. Periods of high task load. Periods of under-stimulation. These are a few of the human challenges in long-duration exploration space missions. These conditions pose challenges not only to humans in space, but also to studying and enhancing performanc...

The term teamwork has graced countless motivational posters and office walls. However, although teamwork is often easy to observe, it is somewhat more difficult to describe and yet more difficult to produce. At a broad level, teamwork is the process through which team members collaborate to achieve task goals. Teamwork refers to the activities thro...

Purpose - The reliance on teams in today's work environment underscores the importance of understanding how teams function. To better understand teams, one must be able to measure team dynamics or interaction. The purpose of this chapter is to outline an unobtrusive approach to measuring team dynamics from verbal communications. Methodology - The b...

The concept of roles is ubiquitous in the social sciences, and a number of scholars have examined the operation of roles in task teams. In fact, this research has resulted in a seemingly unlimited number of roles that have been described as relevant to team performance. In this study, we attempt to integrate this research by deriving a model that d...

This chapter presents an overview of what the concept of stress means, especially in relation to the team context. It examines the impact of stress on team performance. The chapter describes research on teams in extreme environments and review issues in measuring stress at the team level. It explores the difference between assessing task requiremen...

We rely upon teams to perform complex tasks in highly demanding environments, ranging from space exploration to response to earth-bound disasters. In this article, we first briefly review the rich historical legacy of research on teams in extreme settings. Second, we orient our discussion of team performance in extreme environments by focusing on t...

Teams do not operate in a vacuum, but in specific real-world contexts. For many teams, this context includes high-demand, high-stress conditions which can negatively impact team functioning. In this chapter, we discuss how stress may impact team cohesion and examine stress mitigation strategies to overcome these effects.

Applied experimental research is experimental research that applies or extends theory to an identified real-world problem with a practical outcome in mind. In this chapter, we distinguish applied experimental research from more basic theoretical research, discuss the linkages between basic and applied research, and describe practical considerations...

Driskell, T., Burke, S., Driskell, J. E., Salas, E., & Neuberger, L. (2014). Steeling the team: Assessing individual and team functioning “at a distance.” The Military Psychologist, 29(1), 12-18.

Past research on deception detection has demonstrated the diagnostic value of attending to verbal content (e.g., message content) over nonverbal cues (e.g., gaze aversion; Vrij, 2008). Moreover, research has also demonstrated the value of computer-based text analysis programs for distinguishing truthful from deceptive communications (Hauch, Masip,...

There is a truism that “you play the way you train,” and like most bits of folk wisdom, this has an element of truth. When most baseball batters train, they hit soft pitches, work in a batting cage, and hit during batting practice, typically in a controlled setting with little to no stress. The problem is that most training takes place without syst...

A meta-analysis was conducted to determine the overall effectiveness of deception detection training and to identify conditions that may moderate training effectiveness. The analysis was based on a total of 16 studies with 30 separate hypothesis tests, representing the behavior of 2,847 trainees. Results indicated that the effect of deception detec...

This study addresses a practical homeland security issue of considerable current concern: In a situation in which the opportunity exists to question or interview concurrently two or more suspects, how does one determine truth or deception at a social level? Recent world events have led to an increased emphasis on the capacity to detect deception, e...

Long-duration space flight demands prolonged exposure to a myriad of stressors which manifest and interact over time. Despite a significant body of work dedicated to identifying, mitigating, and managing the effects of stress on performance, a clear theoretical foundation explicating the ways in which interactions among stressors occurs, as well as...

We examine the construct of collective orientation, develop a measure to assess individual differences in collective orientation, and examine the extent to which the collective orientation of team members predicts performance on a variety of team tasks. Scholars increasingly emphasize the importance of teamwork in collaborative work environments, a...

Over the past two decades, considerable progress has been achieved in an effort to better identify and understand the various types of organizational commitment, the foci toward which such committed bonds are directed, and the myriad outcomes associated with these bonds. This research adds to and extends such work within a military context. Specifi...

This article describes the results of a meta-analytic integration of the relative contributions of three different components of team training to the efficacy of team training interventions. The three specific components of team training that have received empirical scrutiny in the past are cross-training, team coordination and adaptation training,...

This paper describes the results of a meta-analytic integration of the relative contributions of three different components of team training to the efficacy of team training interventions. The three specific components of team training that have received empirical scrutiny in the past are cross training, team coordination and adaptation training, a...

Good team players are often defined in trait terms; that is, they are described as dependable, flexible, or cooperative. Our goal is to examine the relationship between team member personality traits and team effectiveness. However, to understand the effects of personality on team performance requires greater specificity in how personality is descr...

Groupware refers to software that supports group performance. At the very broadest level, groupware may include a variety of applications, includ-ing electronic mail (e-mail), document-sharing software, electronic meeting systems, videoconferencing, calendar-scheduling systems, decision support systems, and Intranet or Web-based networks. Just to s...

Dominance behavior, the attempt to direct or control others through threat, has been shown to be a generally ineffective influence tactic and results in negative affective reactions and evaluations from others. However, the nonverbal expression of dominance can be distinguished from dominant message content, and the authors propose that the nonverb...

Modern requirements for extended operations in aviation, transportation, the military, and industry have led to extensive research on countermeasures to mitigate the adverse effects of fatigue. The goals of this research were to (a) summarize and integrate existing research on naps as a fatigue countermeasure using meta-analysis, (b) identify the s...

This paper describes a two-year effort to develop a measure of personality-based team orientation using conditional reasoning (CR). A model of team orientation is proposed and the conditional reasoning testing methodology is reviewed. This paper recounts the test development and validation efforts surrounding two CR tests. Although validation effor...

Recent advances in networking environments and telecommunications have led to the proliferation of teams that do not work face-to-face but interact over a computer-mediated communications network. Although some have asserted that virtual teams transcend boundaries of time or distance, others have claimed that working remotely in a mediated team env...

Hand gestures are ubiquitous in communication. However, there is considerable debate regarding the fundamental role that gesture plays in communication and, subsequently, regarding the value of gesture for telecommunications. Controversy exists regarding whether gesture has a primarily communicative function (enhancing listener comprehension) or a...

Although most agree that games can be engaging and that games can be instructive, there is little consensus regarding the essential characteristics of instructional games. Implicit in the research literature is the notion that if we pair instructional content with certain game features, we can harness the power of games to engage users and achieve...

Many high-stress task environments are complex and dynamic, and it is often difficult during training to anticipate the exact conditions that may be encountered in these settings. We conducted an empirical study to examine whether the positive effects of stress training that addressed one specific type of stressor and task would remain when trainee...

Previous research highlights one of the paradoxes of different leadership styles: Group members may be more satisfied with democratic leadership, or group members may be more satisfied with autocratic leadership. A meta-analytic integration of research evidence addressing this paradox revealed that there was, in general, a significant, small tenden...

One of the more well-established findings in the research literature is that stress leads to a restriction or narrowing of attentional focus. In the present study, we extend this research to the group context. We propose that, in a team environment, the narrowing of attention induced by stress may result in a shift in perspective from a broad team...

In this article, meta-analytic integration of research examining the effects of team building on performance is reported. Overall, there was no significant effect of team building on performance. However, the effects of team building varied as a function of the type of operationalization of performance: On objective measures of performance, there w...

This article delineates the use of meta-analysis in the study of group and intergroup behavior. An overview of meta-analysis is provided, including a description of the steps involved in the development of a responsible and informative meta-analytic integration. A set of previously published meta-analyses illustrates several different uses of meta-...

Purpose: A meta-analytic comparison was conducted on research examining the efficacy of leukotriene modifiers (LMs) and inhaled corticosteroids (ICSs) in asthma management. Methods: LMs studies had to yield precise tests of the effects of an LM on forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1). Seven studies (Cloud et al, 1989; Fischer et al., 1995;...

One of the most troublesome dynamics evident in the airplane cockpit is related to patterns of authority relations between the captain and the first officer: Too often, captains fail to listen and first officers fail to speak. The authors propose that many instances of superordinate and subordinate behavior in the cockpit--the captain's tendency to...

A lack of team coordination or collective behavior has been a prominent factor in many real-world accidents. Although collective orientation is purported to be a critical ability, it is a team skill that is very seldom fostered in individual training. This paper describes a program of research designed to address three primary questions regarding c...

Recent studies have argued that deficient decision making under stress is due to adoption of a hypervigilant style of decision making, which has been characterized as disorganized and inefficient. However, under the conditions that characterize many real-world or naturalistic tasks, a hypervigilant pattern of decision making may be adaptive, becaus...

A meta-analytic integration of research evidence revealed that there was, in general, a marginally significant, small tendency for the presence of others to decrease self-reports of arousal and a significant, small tendency for the presence of others to increase electrodermal responses. However, these effects were moderated by the type of situation...

Research conducted largely in medical and clinical settings suggests that receiving preparatory information prior to a stressful event can reduce negative responses to stress. Although results within this domain have been promising, little research has examined the efficacy of preparatory information on enhancing performance in a more applied task...

Research conducted largely in medical and clinical settings suggests that receiving preparatory information prior to a stressful event can reduce negative responses to stress. Although results within this domain have been promising, little research has examined the efficacy of preparatory information on enhancing performance in a more applied task...

Stress inoculation training is an intervention that has shown considerable promise; however, many questions arise regarding the application of this clinically based approach to more applied workplace settings. A meta-analysis was conducted to determine the overall effectiveness of stress inoculation training and to identify conditions that may mode...

Constructivist learning theories represent a new approach to instructional design, and at face value, the constructivist perspective appears to offer an innovative and potentially valuable approach to enhance the effectiveness of Naval training. This report describes the results of a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I study to examin...

A vast amount of research on stress and training has been conducted in the past several decades. This research identifies approaches that are potentially effective for stress training, but often produces conflicting results that are difficult to interpret at the narrative level. It also describes a series of meta-analytic studies undertaken as part...

Mental practice is the cognitive rehearsal of a task prior to performance. Although most researchers contend that mental practice is an effective means of enhancing performance, a clear consensus is precluded because (a) mental practice is often defined so loosely as to include almost any type of mental preparation and (b) empirical results are inc...

Mental practice is the cognitive rehearsal of a task prior to performance. Although most researchers contend that mental practice is an effective means of enhancing performance, a clear consensus is precluded because (a) mental practice is often defined so loosely as to include almost any type of mental preparation and (b) empirical results are inc...

This article reports the results of a meta-analytic integration of the effects of group cohesiveness on quality of decision making in groups. Overall, there was no significant effect of cohesiveness on the quality of group decisions. However, more cohesive groups rendered poorer quality decisions when additional antecedent conditions of groupthink...

This study evaluated the usefulness of personality measures as supplements to cognitive measures in predicting success in Naval basic electricity and elec- tronic training. All students (N = 155) who entered training over a 2-month period completed a personality inventory (Hogan Personality Inventory). Scores on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitu...

Both basic and applied research indicates that women are generally seen as less competent and are less influential in task groups than men. Two studies were conducted, with both female and male speakers, to examine the effectiveness of influence attempts when displaying task cues (behaviors that imply ability or task competence) or dominance cues (...

The effectiveness of overlearning in enhancing performance has been acknowledged by researchers within the training community for years. In spite of this general consensus, the empirical basis for this claim is often not clear. This article presents a meta-analysis of the effects of overlearning on retention. Results indicate that overlearning prod...

Modern complex systems require effective team performance, yet the question of which factors determine effective teams remains to be answered. Group researchers suggest that collective or interdependent behavior is a critical component of team interaction. Furthermore, anecdotal evidence suggests that some team members are less collectively oriente...

This report is a culmination of work originally started in 1988. The combat maintenance environment is an environment that, to date, has not yet been clearly defined but is extremely important to our success in future combat. These maintenance personnel, although highly trained and skilled technicians, receive little preparation for the extreme str...

examine the relationship of small group research to understanding [work] teams / what is the value of small group research for those interested in real-world teams / illustrate the value of small group research in generating basic scientific knowledge as well as guiding practical applications (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reser...

Understanding the processes by which task groups function is a major concern of social psychologists who study small groups. Equally important to the applied group researcher is the understanding of how group processes are altered by the external environment. Research suggests that organizations respond to stress with a centralization of authority...

Status characteristics and expectation states theory is concerned with the processes whereby status differentials activate performance expectations and with the effect of these expectations on behavior. The relative contributions of status and expectations to behavior have not been clearly established in previous primary-level studies. Moreover, re...

A meta-analytic integration is reported that summarizes the effects of model behavior on pedestrian jaywalking. Results indicate that obedient models (models who do not jaywalk) produce a small but significant decrease in the frequency of pedestrian jaywalking. Disobedient models (models who jaywalk) produce a small but significant increase in the...

The true test of military systems and personnel is their ability to operate efficiently in the high stress combat environment. This is especially true in the field of combat maintenance, because the maintenance function is essential to maintaining the high rate of sorties required on the future battlefield. Yet maintenance personnel, although highl...

This paper reports the results of a meta-analytic integration of research examining the relation between participation rate and leadership emergence in small groups. The following patterns were observed: Generally, the tendency for the individual with the highest level of verbal participation to be chosen as the leader was significant and of strong...

Two studies are reported that examined the effects of sequence of measurement and wording of the estimation question on estimates of consensus. In both studies estimates of consensus for own choice, and hence the magnitude of false consensus effects, were larger when estimates were generated before making the choice and when individuals estimated c...

Perhaps no other institution has been as inextricably linked with the growth and development of psychology as the military. This symbiotic relationship, born of the expediency of World War I, rests on two roles: (a) the military as a test-bed or applied laboratory for the examination of psychological processes, and (b) the military as an impetus to...

Most great human achievements are the products of coordinated group efforts: the moon shot, the exploration of the sunken Titanic, the original Mount Everest expedition, the Allied invasion of Europe in WWII. These undertakings all required the mobilization and orchestration of a group effort. Obviously some group efforts are more successful than o...

Many researchers have speculated that personality affects team performance, but the empirical literature on this subject is inconclusive. Prior research on the topic has been hindered by conceptual problems; how to define personality, and how to classify team tasks. By linking a system for classifying team task environments with new data on persona...

The Human Factors Division of the Naval Training Systems Center is interested in identifying psychological favors that influence team performance in the chemical biological Radiological Defense environment. The adoption of a system to classify tasks that may be studied and the development and pilot testing of a team task that can be used to evaluat...

Military operations, almost by definition, involve high levels of stress. Survival in this hostile environment depends on effective performance. Yet, it is ironic that these times when performance is most crucial are often the times when individuals are under the greatest stress, and when stress-induced decrements are most likely to occur--skilled...

Examines advantages of using videogame format for training, including practicality, relatively inexpensive hardware, ability to use multi-purpose software modules, motivational advantages of increased student interest and instructional effectiveness, and instructional features such as the adaptive interactive nature of videogames. An example of a v...

Physical attractiveness (beauty) affects both cognitions about individuals and their interaction patterns. Our proposed theoretical explanation for these phenomena links attractiveness effects to other cases of status generalization such as those produced by race or sex. Many effects of attractiveness can be explained by viewing it as a status char...

Status generalization is a process whereby personal, evaluated characteristics of individuals are imported into task situations and provide a basis for the formation of performance expectations at the outset of task interaction. The Theory of Status Characteristics and Expectation States has focused on the effects of status generalization in struct...

Theoretical developments and empirical evidence over the past two and a half decades are reviewed with an attempt to assess the state of sociological knowledge about how, and conditions under which, external status characteristics of individuals affect their face-to-face interaction. This review describes the development of expectation states theor...

Typescript. Thesis (M.A.)--University of South Carolina. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 76-79).