The relationships among student characteristics, use of team learning principles in a workshop setting, and the likelihood of intent to apply team learning principles as a future manager among undergraduate students in Taiwan

Huang, Mei-Tzu

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/101476 Copy

Description

Title

The relationships among student characteristics, use of team learning principles in a workshop setting, and the likelihood of intent to apply team learning principles as a future manager among undergraduate students in Taiwan

Author(s)

Huang, Mei-Tzu

Issue Date

2018-06-06

Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)

Jacobs, Ronald L.

Doctoral Committee Chair(s)

Jacobs, Ronald L.

Committee Member(s)

• Huang, Wen-Hao
• Martocchio, Joseph J.
• Zhang, Jinming

Department of Study

Educ Policy, Orgzn & Leadrshp

Discipline

Human Resource Education

Degree Granting Institution

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Degree Name

Ph.D.

Degree Level

Dissertation

Keyword(s)

• team learning
• reflection
• boundary spanning
• experimentation
• team learning strategy
• team learning principle
• transfer intention
• training transfer
• team process
• cross-cultural communication
• self-efficacy
• motivation to learn

Abstract

Work teams have been adopted in many organizations. Given that cooperation among team members is fundamental for all work teams, team learning further enhances the capabilities of teams. Team learning occurs when team members begin to share and reflect upon information openly with each other during the course of performing work. As a result, team learning has become a highly desirable aspect of employing work teams. Most research on team learning has focused on confirming the existence of the construct of team learning itself—that is, confirming the existence of the phenomenon. However, few, if any, studies have been conducted that seek to use team learning as an instructional strategy, with the proposition that individuals who learn to use these principles might be more likely to later integrate those same principles in their management practice. This study made use of three team learning principles from the literature—boundary spanning, reflection, and experimentation—as the basis for designing an instructional strategy for a workshop to be delivered to undergraduate business students. Further, the study sought to identify the likelihood that the students would use team learning principles in their future job roles as managers, based on their workshop experience. Thus, the purpose of the study is to investigate the relationships among student characteristics, team learning principles, and team outcomes, with a particular focus on the likelihood that undergraduate business students in Taiwan might use team learning principles as future managers subsequent to having participated in a cross-cultural communication workshop that uses the team learning strategy. The following are research questions for this research: 1. What is the relationship between student characteristics and team outcomes? 2. What is the relationship between team learning principles and team outcomes? 3. What are the relationships among student characteristics, team learning principles, and team outcomes? 4. Were students aware that the workshop setting used the team learning strategy? 5. What is the likelihood of intent to apply team learning principles in the future? The research setting for this study consisted of business-related courses offered at three universities in Taiwan. Four-hour workshops on cross-cultural communication skills were conducted in the three identified courses. Quantitative data were used to clarify the correlational relationships among student characteristics, team learning principles, and team outcomes. Initial surveys on student characteristics were distributed to students at the beginning of the workshops, and the same number of surveys on team outcomes was administered after the workshops. Meanwhile, semi-structured interviews were conducted to collect additional information to support or extend results from quantitative data. Thirteen student participants were interviewed and provided information with respect to their perceptions and observations regarding their teams and the workshops. The results show that there was a relationship among student characteristics, team learning principles, and team outcomes. Compared to student characteristics, team learning principles showed a stronger relationship with team outcome variables. Moreover, reflection and motivation to learn were the main predictors of intent to apply team learning principles and team processes. The results of the interviews show that most interviewees were not aware that the workshop setting used the team learning strategy, and only one student recalled the use of boundary spanning in the workshop. Although most students were not aware of the use of the team learning strategy, some of them perceived different questions, the role of the instructor, more interaction, or opportunities to express thoughts, all of which might be related to the use of the team learning strategy in the workshops. Additional information was obtained from survey responses, which suggests that during the workshops most students had observed that their teams exhibited boundary spanning, reflection, and experimentation. Most interviewees replied that in the future they would try to apply reflection together with boundary spanning, or all three of the team learning principles. A team that lacks positive interaction, finds no consensus, or proves less willing to cooperate would act to prevent students from applying the three principles. A more dominate supervisor would also restrain the application of the team learning principles. On the other hand, a more cooperative team, with more serious team members or more proactive individuals, would help students apply the team learning principles. A supportive supervisor who would give subordinates more latitude also would help achieve this particular goal. Based on the findings, the implications of the study are provided.

Graduation Semester

2018-08

Type of Resource

text

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http://hdl.handle.net/2142/101476

Copyright and License Information

Copyright 2018 Mei-Tzu Huang

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