Bergstrom, J., Dahlstrom, N., Henriqson, E., AND Dekker, S. (2010). Team Coordination In
Escalating Situations: An Empirical Study Using Mid-Fidelity Simulation. Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
This article provides a study regarding the various aspects of team coordination in situations that are unexpected and which seem to increase. In this regard, the authors look at teams that are able to exercise a high level of control in the escalating situations by ensuring that they diminish the effects of the overload of information through the use of clear goals that the members have already agreed upon instead of wasting time by embarking on sharing the incoming data as much as possible. In this regard, the article embarks on evaluating the performance of teams that have experiences with crisis management by simulating situations that are unexpected and continuously deteriorating thereby threatening to affect more than one area of operation.
With regard to team performance and control, the article defines them to be two or more individuals whose work requires them to interact and who share common objectives. As such, the authors note that individuals working together towards achieving shared goals have to undertake joint cognitive activities to articulate the internal processes in order to ensure that the objectives are met. In this regard, the article acknowledges scholars who consider teams to be the cognitive systems whereby coordination and control is crucial towards achieving the set goals. It is important to note that the authors consider coordination and control to be the major aspect of analyzing performance in times of escalating situations. This is particularly because the article provides coordination and synchronization among various agents as the most important aspect while faced with escalating situations because they minimize loses and enhance efficiency.
In the course of providing a literature review regarding coordination, the authors observe that scholars identify three requirements for a successful coordinated within a team; these are interpredictability, directability, and common ground. In this regard, interpredictability is the situation where a team member is able to predict the reaction of another, common ground refers to mutual expectations, and directability is the ability to adapt to the unexpected situations. Ultimately, the authors seek to inform the reader about the way different coordination processes are likely to affect control. Accordingly, the article discusses four modes of control, namely scrambled, opportunistic, tactical, and strategic.
Consequently, the article explains the method, the participants, materials, procedures and data analysis. Accordingly, the authors evaluate the results eventually concluding that a comprehensive set of theoretical concepts is important in understanding the actual demands that are created by unexpected situations. Ultimately, the article notes that a theoretical basis cognitive activity is a significant aspect that enables one to have a better understanding of the reason a team establishes, maintains, and reclaims control when faced with escalating situations.
References
Bergstrom, J., Dahlstrom, N., Henriqson, E., AND Dekker, S. (2010). Team Coordination In
Escalating Situations: An Empirical Study Using Mid-Fidelity Simulation. Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
