Team members' perceptions of online teamwork learning experiences and building teamwork trust: A qualitative study

Teamwork factors can facilitate team members, committing themselves to the purposes of maximizing their own and others' contributions and successes. It is important for online instructors to comprehend students' expectations on learning collaboratively. The aims of this study were to investigate online collaborative learning experiences and to identify important factors that were crucial for building teamwork trust. A qualitative research method was utilized in the study. Data were collected from students' responses of three open-ended questions and interviews. The results indicated that students who enjoyed working in the group setting had a good relationship with their team members and they trusted their team members. In contrast, the questionable behaviors of members (lack of communication and low level of individual accountability) were negative factors of their teamwork experiences. In addition, students considered individual accountability, familiarity with team members, commitment toward quality work, and team cohesion were important factors for building trust with team members. Quantitative analyses confirmed that teamwork trust was correlated significantly with two of the important factors for building trust indicated by team members: familiarity with members (r =.74) and team cohesion (r = .79). Implications and recommendations for future research were also discussed. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.