Analyzing a Research Article on Workplace Communication

This assignment requires students to critically analyze a research article focusing on workplace communication and biases in organizational decisions. The analysis should encompass the article's strengths, highlighting effective use of figures and tables, as well as its weaknesses, such as unsubstantiated assumptions and lack of clear objectives. Furthermore, students must identify the limitations of the research, including time and financial constraints that may have influenced its scope.

Running head: MANAGING UNDER UNCERTAINTY
Annotated Bibliography for computer-mediated communication and decision-making
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

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Article Summary
Reference Baltes, B. B., Dickson, M. W., Sherman, M. P., Bauer, C. C., &
LaGanke, J. S. (2002). Computer-mediated communication and
group decision making: A meta-analysis. Organizational behavior
and human decision processes, 87(1), 156-179.
Article classification Meta analysis
Journal ranking B
Impact factor The impact factor here is the time, which the groups take to reach to
the relevant decision.
Aim/Purpose of the article The aim of the article is to explore the individual member factors,
contributing to the biases.
Approach of the author In this article, the author undertakes the descriptive approach for
researching the approaches of the individual members towards the
decisions taken by the management. In the process of this research,
the author also attempts to explore the biases, which occur within
the decision-making process. Initiating with a brief insight about
the variables, research methodology, results, findings, conclusions
and recommendations reflects the systematic approach of the author
towards validating the journal reference.
Research methodology Sources such as Psychological abstracts, Business Periodical Index,
and dissertations on computer-mediated communication were
referred for collecting necessary data on the individual approaches
of the members involved in the process of decision-making. Along
with this, GDSS systems were considered for coding the variables

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from each data. In total, 22 published sources were used and 5
unpublished sources. The sample size taken for the group
discussion was three at the first instance. However, the included
studies project that the sample size was 52. Therefore, it can be said
that qualitative research methods have been used for completion of
the data collection process.
Research findings and
conclusions by the
researchers
In an organization, the employees possess individual approaches
towards the decisions undertaken by the management. Within this,
biases are implied as the employees have personal approaches
towards the events, which the organizations undertake. Biases in the
group discussions are obvious in terms of exercising the provided
power in comparison to the other employees. As a matter of
specification, maintaining consistency in organizing discussions
and open forums helps the organizational personnel to mitigate the
instances of conflicts and biases, which makes the decision-making
process prolonged. Herein lays the appropriateness of the time
experiment done as a research in the article. Along with this, the
results also points out that the time taken to reach the decisions is
inversely proportional to the satisfaction levels of the members. The
satisfaction levels are distorted if the intensity of the biases is more.
Homogeneity is absent in all of these groups. However, the range of
modernity varies according to the characteristics of the groups.
Intervals are an important factor in terms of calculating the time

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taken by the members to reach to the appropriate decision.
The relationship between the communication and satisfaction levels
is an attempt to project the different approaches of the personnel in
response to the given situation. Herein lays the appropriateness of
the axis of time taken in the figure projections.
Conclusions drawn by the
author
The systematic representation of the research proves apt in terms of
informing the article regarding the contents of the article.
Mathematical calculations for displaying the results make the
businesspersons aware of the individual approaches of the
employees in terms of the decisions undertaken by the
management. Consideration of the relevant sources is flexible
enough for the researcher in terms of averting the instances of
plagiarism and collusion. Theoretical considerations towards the
perception of workplace communications bring to the forefront the
adjustment skills of the employees within an ambience of pressure.
The research in the article lacks proper format, which attaches an
interrogative parameter to the précised form of doing dissertations.
Critical Insight
Significance The experimentations done in this article can be correlated with the hyper-
dimensions as mentioned in the article, Interpersonal and Hyperpersonal
Dimensions of Computer
‐Mediated Communication. This is because experiments
relate to different mindsets of the employees in a given situation (Walther et al.,

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2015). Moreover, the source is directly related with the individual approaches of
the employees in terms of the organizational decisions. However, the critique is
more focused on the variable “interpersonal;” rather than computer mediated
communication. Viewing it from the other perspective, referring to the
psychological abstracts, helps the managers in assessing the mentality of the
employees in different situations. Herein lays the correlation with the act of
evaluating the feasibility, effectiveness and appropriateness of the
communication systems in terms of the workplace environment. The previous
sentence establishes the linkage between the given article and the article entitled,
Computer-mediated communication systems: Status and evaluation (Kerr & Hiltz,
2013). This evaluation enhances the clarity of the businesspersons in terms of
providing training to the employees for motivating them towards a better
performance. Evaluation of the group discussions helps the managers of the
organizations to enhance their awareness regarding the individual approaches of
the employees towards the decisions undertaken. Application of rationality in
this process enhances the personal status of the managers. This rationality is
assistance in terms of discovering the biases and attempting to mitigate them.
Exposure of collaborative output in organizing group discussions enable the
personnel to achieve successful completion of the projects within the stipulated
times. Along with this, collaboration results in transfer to skills from one
employee to the other, nullifying the aspect of inadequate knowledge (Morreale,
Spitzberg & Barge, 2013).
Comparison with the other articles broadens the scope and arena of the article as

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well as the aspect of individual approaches, which leads to biases in the decision-
making process. This expansion reflects the importance of liberty, which is an
important component in the workplace communication. The aspect of 3
dimensional communications can be considered as an innovation in the aspect of
communication practiced in the workplace of the organizations. The three
dimensions here can be the approaches and mentality of the personnel in terms
of the organizational decisions. Herein the article, Interpersonal and
Hyperpersonal Dimensions of Computer
‐Mediated Communication can be
correlated (Walther et al., 2015). As a matter of specification, the words
“interpersonal” and “dimensions” can be correlated, as the mind has different
dimensions for reacting to the instances, which takes place in the surrounding of
the individuals.
Strengths Theoretical considerations enliven the circumstances in which workplace
communication is effective. In-depth insight into the variables enriches the
preconceived knowledge, skills and expertise of the business organizations in
terms of maintaining diversity in the workplace (Baltes et al., 2002). Herein lays
the appropriateness of using the figures and tables. Comparison between the
variables proves effective in terms of providing the opportunity to the employees
regarding the exposure of appropriate expression towards the organizational
decisions.
Weakness The article makes some assumptions, which are not true. Making such
assumptions possess high tendencies towards controversies, which makes the
results and the conclusions an invalid one. Along with this, the article lacks the

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assertion of the objectives, which would be assessed in the conclusion (Baltes et
al., 2002). This lack attaches an interrogative parameter to the derived conclusion
and proposed recommendations. This interrogation raises doubts over the
research perspective highlighted in the article. Apart from this, there is no
connection between the sections of the article. After the abstract, the article
abruptly starts, without any introduction (Baltes et al., 2002). In other words, the
article fails to enhance the knowledge of the readers regarding the factors leading
to biases in response to the organizational decisions.
Limitations The main limitations of the article are time and finance. Availability of adequate
time would have resulted in the consideration of quantitative research along with
qualitative. This would have enhanced the clarity of the researcher in the article
about the approaches of the employees in terms of the workplace
communications. Inadequate financial resources have compelled the researcher
of the article to publish the article in this format (Baltes et al., 2002). Failure in
terms of aligning the research with the topic is one of the greatest limitations of
the article.

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References
Alberts, J. K., Nakayama, T. K., & Martin, J. N. (2015). Human communication in society.
Pearson.
Baltes, B. B., Dickson, M. W., Sherman, M. P., Bauer, C. C., & LaGanke, J. S. (2002).
Computer-mediated communication and group decision making: A meta-
analysis. Organizational behavior and human decision processes, 87(1), 156-179.
Hoch, J. E., & Kozlowski, S. W. (2014). Leading virtual teams: Hierarchical leadership,
structural supports, and shared team leadership. Journal of applied psychology, 99(3),
390.
Kalman, Y. M., & Gergle, D. (2014). Letter repetitions in computer-mediated communication: A
unique link between spoken and online language. Computers in Human Behavior, 34,
187-193.
Kerr, E. B., & Hiltz, S. R. (2013). Computer-mediated communication systems: Status and
evaluation. Academic Press.
Morreale, S. P., Spitzberg, B. H., & Barge, J. K. (2013). Communication: Motivation,
knowledge, skills. Peter Lang.
Schouten, A. P., van den Hooff, B., & Feldberg, F. (2016). Virtual team work: Group decision
making in 3D virtual environments. Communication Research, 43(2), 180-210.
Walther, J. B., Van Der Heide, B., Ramirez, A., Burgoon, J. K., & Peña, J. (2015). Interpersonal
and Hyperpersonal Dimensions of Computer‐Mediated Communication. The
handbook of the psychology of communication technology, 1-22.

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