Papers

Peer-reviewed
May 1, 2018

The Power of a “Maverick” in Collaborative Problem Solving: An Experimental Investigation of Individual Perspective-Taking Within a Group

Cognitive Science
  • Yugo Hayashi

Volume
42
Number
S1
First page
69
Last page
104
Language
English
Publishing type
Research paper (scientific journal)
DOI
10.1111/cogs.12587
Publisher
Wiley-Blackwell Publishing

Integrating different perspectives is a sophisticated strategy for developing constructive interactions in collaborative problem solving. However, cognitive aspects such as individuals’ knowledge and bias often obscure group consensus and produce conflict. This study investigated collaborative problem solving, focusing on a group member interacting with another member having a different perspective (a “maverick”). It was predicted that mavericks might mitigate disadvantages and facilitate perspective taking during problem solving. Thus, 344 university students participated in two laboratory-based experiments by engaging in a simple rule-discovery task that raised conflicts among perspectives. They interacted with virtual partners whose conversations were controlled by multiple conversational agents. Results show that when participants interacted with a maverick during the task, they were able to take others’ perspectives and integrate different perspectives to solve the problem. Moreover, when participants interacted in groups with a positive mood, groups with a maverick outperformed groups having several perspectives.

Link information
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1111/cogs.12587
ID information
  • DOI : 10.1111/cogs.12587
  • ISSN : 1551-6709
  • ISSN : 0364-0213
  • SCOPUS ID : 85041219806

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