How do Members Interact in Small Teams? Results from a Study in a Simulation Game

This study was conducted to explore the nature of interactions between team members. Member behaviour was observed in small teams with simple goals using Salad Bowl, a simulation game. First, an instrument was developed with statements containing expressions such as objective and commitment to capture the players’ experiences. Then, it was translated into the Thai language and tested for meaning and validity. Finally, it was administered to 175 participants at the end of their games, and its data was processed and tested for internal reliability. Two factors of team interactions, goal orientation and emotive actions, were extracted after factor analysis and were named after scrutiny of the statements. A regression analysis showed that goal orientation had almost twice the positive impact on emotive actions, as did emotive actions on goal orientation. Extensions of these findings in future research and in use for other team domains were also discussed.