Full Paper: An Investigation of Team Conflicts in a Large-Enrollment Introductory Engineering Course

Haritha Malladi; Jenni Buckley

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Conference: 2022 First-Year Engineering Experience
Location: East Lansing, Michigan
Publication Date: July 31, 2022
Start Date: July 31, 2022
End Date: August 2, 2022
Conference Session: Technical Session M5B
Tagged Topic: Full Papers
Page Count: 7
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--42226
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/42226
Download Count: 169

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Paper Authors

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Haritha Malladi University of Delaware

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Haritha Malladi is an Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the Director of First-Year Engineering at the University of Delaware. She received her Bachelor of Technology degree in Civil Engineering from National Institute of Technology, Warangal, India, and her MS and PhD in Civil Engineering from North Carolina State University. She is a teacher-scholar working in the intersection of undergraduate engineering education, sustainable infrastructure, and community engagement. She teaches the introductory engineering course for all first-year undergraduate students in the College of Engineering at UD. Her undergraduate teaching experience includes foundational engineering mechanics courses like statics and strength of materials as well as courses related to sustainability and infrastructure. Her research interests are in foundational engineering education, sustainability in engineering curriculum, and green technologies in infrastructure.

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Jenni Buckley University of Delaware

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Dr. Buckley is an Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at University of Delaware. She received her Bachelor’s of Engineering (2001) in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Delaware, and her MS (2004) and PhD (2006) in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley, where she worked on computational and experimental methods in spinal biomechanics. Since 2006, her research efforts have focused on the development and mechanical evaluation of medical and rehabilitation devices, particularly orthopaedic, neurosurgical, and pediatric devices. She teaches courses in design, biomechanics, and mechanics at University of Delaware and is heavily involved in K12 engineering education efforts at the local, state, and national levels.

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Abstract

Team-based projects are widely used in introductory engineering courses to support the development of collaboration and communication skills and to engage novice engineers in higher levels of thinking. While the details of team-based design projects may vary across institutes, they generally involve small teams of students tasked with solving a substantive, open-ended design challenge that requires the application of engineering principles to create physical prototypes or computational models. Team-based design projects are employed at all levels of engineering training culminating in senior capstone experiences. A typical engineering student will engage in at least one semester-long, team-based project per academic year. Team-based projects in introductory engineering courses play an important role in inculcating good collaborative practices among students.

Conflicts within student teams are common, especially in the first year, when students may have had limited experience working on substantial projects that require contribution from all team members. Consistent with our experience, social loafing has been identified as the most prevalent problem within student teams, particularly in early undergraduate years. Social loafing is defined as reduced motivation, effort, or performance from individual team member(s). The incidence of social loafing can be reduced by assigning compelling, complex projects to smaller teams of students and routinely using peer evaluations. Ohland et al. have developed a robust peer evaluation system (CATME by Purdue University) that is widely used in engineering programs—including our institution—to collect quantitative and qualitative information that can be used to individuate student performance within teams. To effectively address interpersonal issues in teams, it is important to detect the incidence and root cause of team conflicts.

This paper presents an investigation into the prevalence of team conflicts in a large-enrollment introductory engineering course (ca. 650 students) in a mid-sized, research-intensive state university in the US. We have identified three potential root causes that may explain perceived social loafing by team members: 1) logistical barriers, 2) marginalization, and 3) genuine disinterest. An example of the first type, logistical barriers, is when a student has difficulty contributing to a team based on the location and timing of team meetings. The second root cause is when a student feels marginalized by the group, thus contributing to reduced participation. The third, genuine disinterest, includes instances in which a student has decided to change majors and is not interested in performing well in the course. Using weekly CATME peer evaluation data and an end-of-semester student survey, this study categorizes the incidence of social loafing based on its root cause. Other potential causes of team conflicts are also identified. Results from this study will be used to guide instructors on how to coach individuals and teams towards more effective team behaviors and address social loafing when it occurs.

Citation
Format

Malladi, H., & Buckley, J. (2022, July), Full Paper: An Investigation of Team Conflicts in a Large-Enrollment Introductory Engineering Course Paper presented at 2022 First-Year Engineering Experience, East Lansing, Michigan. 10.18260/1-2--42226

TY - CPAPER
AB - Team-based projects are widely used in introductory engineering courses to support the development of collaboration and communication skills and to engage novice engineers in higher levels of thinking. While the details of team-based design projects may vary across institutes, they generally involve small teams of students tasked with solving a substantive, open-ended design challenge that requires the application of engineering principles to create physical prototypes or computational models. Team-based design projects are employed at all levels of engineering training culminating in senior capstone experiences. A typical engineering student will engage in at least one semester-long, team-based project per academic year. Team-based projects in introductory engineering courses play an important role in inculcating good collaborative practices among students.

Conflicts within student teams are common, especially in the first year, when students may have had limited experience working on substantial projects that require contribution from all team members. Consistent with our experience, social loafing has been identified as the most prevalent problem within student teams, particularly in early undergraduate years. Social loafing is defined as reduced motivation, effort, or performance from individual team member(s). The incidence of social loafing can be reduced by assigning compelling, complex projects to smaller teams of students and routinely using peer evaluations. Ohland et al. have developed a robust peer evaluation system (CATME by Purdue University) that is widely used in engineering programs—including our institution—to collect quantitative and qualitative information that can be used to individuate student performance within teams. To effectively address interpersonal issues in teams, it is important to detect the incidence and root cause of team conflicts.

This paper presents an investigation into the prevalence of team conflicts in a large-enrollment introductory engineering course (ca. 650 students) in a mid-sized, research-intensive state university in the US. We have identified three potential root causes that may explain perceived social loafing by team members: 1) logistical barriers, 2) marginalization, and 3) genuine disinterest. An example of the first type, logistical barriers, is when a student has difficulty contributing to a team based on the location and timing of team meetings. The second root cause is when a student feels marginalized by the group, thus contributing to reduced participation. The third, genuine disinterest, includes instances in which a student has decided to change majors and is not interested in performing well in the course. Using weekly CATME peer evaluation data and an end-of-semester student survey, this study categorizes the incidence of social loafing based on its root cause. Other potential causes of team conflicts are also identified. Results from this study will be used to guide instructors on how to coach individuals and teams towards more effective team behaviors and address social loafing when it occurs.
AU - Haritha Malladi
AU - Jenni Buckley
CY - East Lansing, Michigan
DA - 2022/07/31
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Full Paper: An Investigation of Team Conflicts in a Large-Enrollment Introductory Engineering Course
UR - https://peer.asee.org/42226
DO - 10.18260/1-2--42226
ER -