Designing together while apart: The role of computer-mediated communication and collaborative virtual environments on design collaboration

This paper presents an empirical study of two student pairs collaborating on two small products design session in both face-to-face and distributed settings while using computer-mediated communication (CMC) technologies and a collaborative virtual environment (CVE). To gain insight about the way designers communicate and collaborate, the observation focused on how much time the students worked together and individually in the design process. The study shows that teams worked together more in the distributed setting than in the face-to-face setting. In the post-test questionnaires, participants reported that they found the distributed setting a more engaging environment to work with teammates. Findings of the study suggest plausible design criteria for a communication system for distributed collaboration that supports interaction and sharing design information.