Toward a conceptual model of common ground in teamwork

Testing, refining, and incrementing common ground is a basic function of communication and collaboration. Initially, language researchers defined common ground as the sum of mutual, common, or joint knowledge, beliefs, suppositions and protocols shared between people engaged in communications (Clark 1996). They investigated the development of common ground - the grounding process. Communication is a joint activity, in which partners use verbal and non-verbal signs (e.g., gestures, gaze) to coordinate dialogue and actions toward common, continuously tested goals (Clark 1996). Later, researchers of computer-mediated communication found that different communication media present different affordances and cost structures for different parts of the grounding process (Clark and Brennan 1991). We study the grounding process in the context of computer-supported cooperative work. Greater common ground enables better communication, coordination, and collaboration. We study how collaboration tools, member and team variables and work conditions affect how collaborators share and coordinate knowledge and how they operate and develop as a team.