With the development of networked computing and the increased complexity
of applications and software systems development, the importance of
computer-supported collaborative work [CSCW] has dramatically
increased. Globalization has further accentuated the necessity of
collaboration, while the Web has made geographically distributed
collaborative systems technologically feasible in a manner that was
impossible until recently. The software environments needed to support
such distributed teams are referred to as Groupware. Groupware is
intended to address the logistical, managerial, social, organizational
and cognitive difficulties that arise in the application of distributed
expertise. These issues represent the fundamental challenges to the next
generation of process management.
Computer-Supported Collaboration with Applications to Software
Development reviews the theory of collaborative groups and the factors
that affect collaboration, particularly collaborative software
development. The influences considered derive from diverse sources:
social and cognitive psychology, media characteristics, the
problem-solving behavior of groups, process management, group
information processing, and organizational effects. It also surveys
empirical studies of computer-supported problem solving, especially for
software development. The concluding chapter describes a collaborative
model for program development.
Computer-Supported Collaboration with Applications to Software
Development is designed for an academic and professional market in
software development, professionals and researchers in the areas of
software engineering, collaborative development, management information
systems, problem solving, cognitive and social psychology. This book
also meets the needs of graduate-level students in computer science and
information systems.