Collaboration and Interpersonal Skills

1. Core Concept Overview & Intuition

Collaboration and interpersonal skills form one of the central skill areas of this course. The approved notes frame the whole course around the idea that communication and collaboration are key twenty-first-century skills, and that the ability to work creatively in groups to carry out research projects is a stated learning outcome. This topic therefore moves from the fundamentals of communication into the practical realities of working with other people: how groups form and develop, how they stay together, how they resolve disagreements, how they avoid the problem of members who contribute little, how individuals build professional relationships, and how they find and judge information.

The unifying intuition is that a team is "a group of people who come together to work in an interrelated manner towards a common goal" (McChan, et al., 2015). Well-performing groups have defined roles and a set of norms to guide their operations. Teamwork has become the new norm in the twenty-first century whether in academics, work, or other aspects of life. The notes stress that working in groups is not easy: conflicts occur at various levels and, if not properly handled, can easily derail group efforts. However, conflicts are not always negative. This balanced view — groups are valuable but fragile, and disagreement can be productive — runs through every subtopic.

The topic also connects group life to individual competence. Networking is described as the process of building relationships with other people to help one another achieve a certain goal, happening mostly through information exchange. Networking is social capital that a person can use to move from one level to a higher one. Through networking one is likely to meet the "Knowledgeable Other" that Vygotsky speaks of — a person who can be a mentor or simply share information needed in a particular aspect. Interpersonal etiquette and professional conduct are thus not decorative; they are the means by which social capital is built and maintained.

The information side of the topic rests on the claim that information is a vital commodity in any aspect of life, so knowing how to find it, where to find it, and how to use it is important. There is an explosion of information and information sources, and information and communication technology advancements have made information easily available. Information literacy is a set of abilities necessary for individuals in all disciplines, learning environments and levels of education, and one currently needs the help of information technology to carry out activities that involve information. Because not all information is reliable or able to meet a particular need, evaluation of sources is essential. The university library, for many centuries the main repository of information sources, now does more than store material: it promotes information literacy, with the focus more on the user than on storage.

A useful orienting image for the group side of the topic is the GRIP model of teamwork dynamics, which summarises the elements of well-performing groups.

2. Mathematical Formalization & Core Definitions

The approved notes contain no mathematical notation, so this section presents the core definitions and conceptual vocabulary in plain prose.

Communication. Communication is an active process of exchanging information between individuals using a common system of symbols, signs and behaviour (Wilkinson, 1984). It happens at the intrapersonal level (internal monologue or reflection), the interpersonal level, and the group, public and mass levels. Earlier views treated communication as having four components: sender, receiver, message and channel. Current understanding adds feedback, context, barriers and effect, and treats communication not as a one-way process but as a transaction and interaction process. Meaning is not simply a good passed from one individual to another; it is a process of constructing meaning by taking into account the different perspectives of participants.

Team. A team is a group of people who come together to work in an interrelated manner towards a common goal. A team is also described as an interdependent group working towards a common goal.

Group norms. Norms are the shared expectations that guide a group's operations. The notes identify several functions of norms: they encourage collaboration by getting members to work together and share resources towards common goals, which improves overall group performance; they manage conflict, for example a norm that all members must be respectful and listen to each other prevents arguments and disagreements from getting out of hand; and they hold members accountable, for example a norm that all members must prepare for each session and actively participate helps ensure everyone is pulling their weight.

Group formation and dynamics. Groups go through different stages before they are able to begin working together effectively. Though these stages appear linear, in real life it is possible for a team to go back to an earlier stage depending on the prevailing situation. For example, a team may be moving quite well at the performing stage and realise it has to retrace its steps to forming in order to gain clarity. The notes refer students to the five models for understanding team dynamics for further detail.

Cohesion. Cohesion is the quality of sticking together as a group. The notes treat cohesion alongside collaboration strategies, noting that conflicts occur at various levels and can derail group efforts if not properly handled, while also insisting that conflicts are not always negative.

Social loafing. Social loafing is the behaviour of certain members of a group who play the "passenger" role by exerting little effort towards the accomplishment of group projects or tasks. This behaviour can affect team performance in many ways, and there are many reasons that lead to such behaviour.

Networking. Networking is the process of building relationships with other people to help one another achieve a certain goal, happening mostly through information exchange. It is social capital usable to move from one level to a higher one, and it is the route by which one is likely to meet the "Knowledgeable Other" — a mentor or a sharer of needed information.

Interpersonal etiquette. The course requirements state plainly that learners must be polite in all communication and avoid any language that might create a negative learning environment with other learners. This politeness requirement is the practical expression of interpersonal etiquette in the course.

Information literacy. Information literacy is a set of abilities necessary for individuals in all disciplines, learning environments and levels of education. Currently one needs the help of information technology to carry out activities that involve information.

Sources of information. Since information is a vital commodity in any aspect of life, knowing how to find it, where to find it, and how to use it is important. There are many sources of information to meet various academic and other needs, and there is an explosion of information and information sources. Information and communication technology advancements have made information easily available, so it is important to learn where to find information, how to find it efficiently, and to gauge what best suits a specific need.

Categories of information sources. The notes list categories that include motion pictures; electronic resources such as computer data or programs; three-dimensional artefacts and realia; and continuing resources such as journals, newsletters, magazines and annual reports.

Search strategy. A search strategy is your journey into finding information which will address various needs. The need could be academic, work related, or an inquiry on any aspect of life. The notes illustrate with an academic essay, where the student must ask a number of questions about the process: what do I need, where do I find it, and how do I find it.

Advanced search. Looking for sources online to address information needs can be a daunting task. One way of getting more focused and useful results is by doing an advanced search, for example by using Boolean operators such as AND or plus, OR, and NOT, particularly for peer-reviewed journals.

The role in an academic institution library. For many centuries the university has been the main repository of information sources. The commonest view of a library is a building with various sections that store information for different users, but the university in the twenty-first century does more than that: it promotes information literacy in many ways, and the focus is more on the user than on storage.

Evaluating sources. There is a lot of information on almost every subject one chooses to work on, but not all of that information is reliable or able to meet a particular need.

Information ethics. The Institute of Global Ethics (2016) defines information ethics as the branch of ethics that focuses on the relationship between the creation, organization, dissemination, and use of information, and ethical standards, and moral codes governing human conduct in society. Information ethics is a broad area cutting across disciplines and practices; in this course it is discussed mainly in the context of using information for academic purposes such as writing papers, and also related to wider application.

Call numbers and interlibrary loan. Libraries use call numbers to request items from other libraries through interlibrary loan. This ensures that the correct item is being requested and that it can be easily located and sent to the requesting library.

Citation and bibliography management tools. There are many programs designed to help writers prepare their bibliography or reference lists with ease. They require downloading and installing into a computer, and they fall into various categories, including free tools.