while i have finished my thesis, i am leaving the survey online for a few months so others can participate. if you work in a virtual team and are interested in contributing, please email me at jen at riza dot com. i will supply you with additional information concerning the research & confidentiality as well as instructions.

fyi, the research involves an online survey which takes approximately 15-20 min and a short follow-up interview (via IM or email).

*INGRoup*
*Interdisciplinary Network for Group Research*
/Using research to advance the understanding of group behavior,
dynamics, and outcomes/

Call for Papers
Initiating Conference
July 27-29, 2006 — Pittsburgh, PA

Scholars who study groups and teams are scattered across many
social scientific disciplines, such as communication,
organizational behavior, psychology, and sociology. The
Interdisciplinary Network for Group Research (INGRoup) was
created to provide a place for scholars to:

1. Promote communication about group research across fields and nations
2. Advance understanding about group dynamics through research
3. Advance theory and methods for understanding groups
4. Promote interdisciplinary research

The first INGRoup conference is planned to facilitate
conversations among scholars across disciplines. In addition to
paper and symposia sessions, interdisciplinary plenary panels
will be scheduled with key scholars in communication,
industrial/organizational psychology, organizational behavior and
social psychology. One session will be devoted to planning for
the future of INGRoup and its conferences.
The conference will be held at the Holiday Inn Select at
University Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA. A block of rooms have
been reserved ($109/night/double + 14% tax). The conference fee
is expected to be less than $300 and will include conference
programs; a welcome dinner on July 27^th ; and break
refreshments, lunches, and dinners on July 28^th and 29th,
including a dinner trip to the Pittsburgh Zoo on the 29^th .**

*Types of Submissions*
/Papers/: Submit a 400-600 word extended abstract for papers
that (a) present original research, or (b) review and critique
group theory or group methods. Provide full name, position,
institution, and contact information for all authors. Indicate
your preference of presenting your paper as an oral presentation
or poster session. Include up to 5 keywords to help the Program
Committee organize papers in relevant topical areas across
disciplines.

/Symposia/: Submit a 3-5 page proposal describing the focal
issue, the participants’ qualifications and expected
contributions, and proof of commitment from all participants that
they will register for and attend the conference. Provide full
name, position, institution, and contact information for all
presenters. Symposia that include participants for one
disciplinary tradition are highly discouraged.

*Submission Procedures*
Submit extended abstracts for papers and proposal for symposia by
*January 16, 2006** *to Joann Keyton, Program Chair, via email
(jkeyton@ku.edu). Please use INGRoup in the subject line of your
submission. Submissions will be reviewed for appropriateness by
the Program Committee. The program chair will notify the
submitter of acceptance early in March. The submitter is
responsible for notifying co-authors or other session
participants. All session participants are expected to register
for and attend the conference; all accepted papers must be
presented by one of the authors.

For additional information, go to INGRoup’s website,
www.INGROUP.info, or contact a member of the organizing
committee:

Richard Kettner-Polley, Colorado Technical University
(rkpolley@coloradotech.edu )
Joann Keyton, Univesity of Kansas (jkeyton@ku.edu
)
Franziska Tschan, University of Neuchatel
(franziska.tschan@unine.ch )
Laurie Weingart, Carnegie Mellon Univesity
(weingart@andrew.cmu.edu )
Gwen Wittenbaum, Michigan State University (gwittenb@msu.edu

instead of listing all my links w/in the blog, i’ve set up del.icio.us. so just check in there or subscribe to the RSS.

while i was considering going back to school, i knew i wanted to do a thesis. once before, in ’95, i attempted athesis. i decided on a broad subject (online communities & the music industry) but really didn’t get farther than some reading. i was working full-time & eventually realised there was no way i was going to be able to do both. when i found out that i had enough credits to graduate without doing the thesis (or any classes or anything except pay the graduation fee), i decided graduation was probably the better option.

this time around i was thinking about cross-cultural communication, specifically in virtual teams. i have worked in many virtual teams over the years and like online communities, they fascinate me.

(to be continued)

now that i’m finished with my thesis, i don’t know where to start to document it. while i was in the process, i felt like i didn’t have time to spare on a blog but once i started reading rowena murray’s book (which rocks BTW, i highly recommend it), i realised i should have been blogging sooooooo much more.

so now i guess ill try to touch on some high (and low) points of the journey as well as my research results and what is going on in the industry. since i’ve handed in my final version, i haven’t touched the thing. it’s been a good break. but now it’s time for me to get back on it. back into the habit of writing.