Expanding the Information Carrying Capacity of the New Media in the Context of Virtual Teams

Abstract

This chapter considers the pivotal role of computer-mediated communication in supporting the work of virtual teams. The limited information carrying capacity of computer-mediated communication channels has been well documented and the subject of much research. Media richness theory is the context for a proposed technique aiming to increase the information carrying capacity of CMC in virtual teams. The technique, based upon developing a shared social construction, is presented and suggestions on how it may be evaluated are proposed.