Investigating Performance of Command Team Structures in the NATO Problem-Approach Space

Neville A. Stanton, Ling Rothrock, Catherine Harvey, Linda Sorensen

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

11 Scopus citations

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the NATO Problem-Approach Space could be mapped to optimal performance of different team structures. The results show that the five team communication structures (chain, Y, circle, wheel, and all-connected) did not generally perform as predicted based on findings in the literature. The team structures all performed most optimally in the same Problem Space conditions: static rate of change, strong information position, and familiarity with the task. Moreover, contrary to predictions, the all-connected team structure did not perform particularly well at all. Instead, the Y team structure produced the highest levels of performance and was, therefore, judged to be the most successful team structure overall. The Y team structure can be seen as a simplified form of typical military command structures including staff officers and subordinate units. Therefore, the findings of the study serve as a reinforcement of the effectiveness of the classic command and control structure.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number7123617
Pages (from-to)702-713
Number of pages12
JournalIEEE Transactions on Human-Machine Systems
Volume45
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 2015

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Human Factors and Ergonomics
  • Control and Systems Engineering
  • Signal Processing
  • Human-Computer Interaction
  • Computer Science Applications
  • Computer Networks and Communications
  • Artificial Intelligence

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