Collaboration is Easier Online
Over the course of my academic career, I’ve been involved with several group projects that required me to collaborate with my peers. These projects have ranged from class assignments to research posters/papers. And for a long time, I thought the best way to collaborate on these types of projects was to meet in person. However, after reflecting on a recent in-person meeting, I realized that in-person meetings have some drawbacks. Often, collaboration is better online.
I met with a grad student whom I’ve been helping complete a systematic literature review. We each needed to read through the full text of each article and recommend whether to include it in the review. Most of this we would do at home, separately. But since there were hundreds of articles to read through, and a third reviewer (our professor) would have to resolve any conflicts between our recommendations, we wanted to first get calibrated to make sure we were using the same criteria to make our decisions. Therefore, we met in person in our research lab on campus.
I wasn’t able to bring my computer, so we placed her computer on the table in front of us and sat close together. As we read, we checked in with one another to ensure we had both finished a given section before scrolling down. Once we finished reviewing an article, we recorded our recommendation on whether it should be included – using an online, systematic-review tool – and made notes to support our decision. Because we were using her computer, she recorded her recommendation under her login and I took notes on paper. We reviewed a handful of articles over the course of an hour and then decided we were ready to work independently.
In retrospect, this meeting wasn’t very efficient. Not only was our reading flow frequently interrupted by waiting for the other person, but I also had to revisit those articles using my own login when I got home. Additionally, it was sometimes distracting to hear the slight rustling sounds my partner made anytime she moved. But what hampered my concentration the most was my concern that I’d read too slowly: I feared she’d frequently be looking to me to finish – having to wait before we could move on. This led me to skim/speed-read and occasionally miss things. And finally, all the leaning and hunching over left my back feeling sore.
This meeting would have been much more productive – and comfortable – if we had met online. First, meeting online would have guaranteed that we each used separate computers. We could have read through an entire article simultaneously without having to continually check in with one another to know when it was time to scroll to the next section. We also would have had more autonomy in looking through an article – we could have used Ctrl+F to look for keywords without interrupting what the other person was doing. Furthermore, we both could have used our own logins to record our recommendations to include/exclude an article and leave supporting notes. I wouldn’t have had to backtrack later.
Second, meeting online would have given us more control to minimize distractions. Not only could we each have chosen our own, quiet environment – without anyone else in the room – but we could have also ensured that we weren’t a distraction to one another by turning our cameras/mics off when we needed time to concentrate. For example, we could have chosen to go dark/silent for a set block of time so we could review one or more articles. Then we could have turned our cameras/mics back on for discussion, so we could ensure we were making the same recommendations to include/exclude – and if we weren’t, we could then determine why.
Third, if we had met online, we each could have used our own preferred work setup. We wouldn’t have had to lean to the side and hunch over to see the computer. Sometimes, I attend online meetings from my couch. I can sit comfortably, with a fair amount of back support, and adjust the table for my laptop so I can sit with good posture. Other times, especially if I’m feeling the need for more back/wrist support, I’ll sit ergonomically in my office chair at my desk. If I had been able to use my preferred work setup, I probably could have met and stayed focused for longer than just one hour.
After reflecting on my recent online and in-person meetings, I no longer think in-person meetings are always the best way to collaborate with others on academic projects – sometimes, online is better. Online meetings ensure everyone has their own device and can work simultaneously, unimpeded. They make it easier for everyone to minimize distractions and work with better concentration. And they give everyone better control over their work setup and physical comfort – hopefully, making it easier to meet and remain focused for the planned length of time. I know I’ll keep these points in mind in the future, and I encourage you to do the same. The next time you need to collaborate on an academic group project – such as a class assignment or a research poster involving 2 or 3 team members – give online meetings a try. You’ll see for yourself: Online is more comfortable, more efficient, and more productive.
Cassandra Hoffman has been a member of the Interactive Measurement Group since Fall 2020. During her time in the lab, she has served as a poster team leader and Managing Editor for the lab’s newsletter, and she has conducted a variety of workshops to help new and existing lab members. In Spring 2022, she graduated from UNLV with a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Neuroscience. In the near future, she plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, during which she hopes to conduct research on treatment methods for moral injury and/or trauma-related disorders.