Shared leadership and group interaction styles in problem-solving virtual teams

Despite their prevailing growth, little systematic evidence exists regarding the effectiveness of computer-mediated "virtual" teams (VTs), especially in relation to their traditional counterpart, face-to-face teams (FtFTs). A partial least squares (PLS) analysis revealed that FtFTs were more likely to demonstrate higher levels of shared leadership and a constructive interaction style than were VTs. In turn, shared leadership and a constructive interaction style were shown to positively predict cohesion, whereas a defensive interaction style was shown to negatively predict cohesion. Shared leadership was also positively associated with a constructive interaction style and negatively associated with a defensive interaction style. Finally, task performance was shown to be a function of group cohesion.