An empirical investigation of the effects of group support systems (GSS) and task type on group interactions from an influence perspective

This research examines an important issue that has not been specifically addressed in the GSS literature, namely, the effects of GSS and task type on group processes and social interactions. Most previous GSS research has focused on studying group outcomes, whereas the current research studies group interaction processes using two different coding methods. A conceptual research model is derived from the Theory of Time, Interaction and Performance (TIP theory) and a review of the literature on social psychology and GSS. Task and social interactions are studied from an influence perspective. The task type is varied as preference task and intellective task. The support level is varied in a GSS support and non-GSS support (i.e., face-to-face) discussion. Research results report that GSS could significantly influence group interaction processes, and tend to enhance group task interactions but dampen group social interactions.