Predicting team success with quantitative metrics of communication patterns

This study introduces a communication coding scheme that captures team progress. Two new metrics, the disengagement ratio and forward index, are introduced and prove effective for distinguishing high and low performing teams. Forty-eight participants completed a communication-intensive game as defuser (operator). Transcripts were coded using speech act, speech category, and progress coding schemes. The disengagement ratio indexed reactivity versus initiative, while the forward index quantified communication that moved the task forward. Mixed-effects models showed that poor-performing teams made more information requests and repairs and had higher modified anticipation and disengagement ratios. Higher-performing teams showed a higher forward index and lower sideways frequency rate. The new disengagement and task-progress metrics capture additional dimensions of communication, and our findings indicate their potential for assessing team performance.Practitioner Summary Team performance depends on active, progress-oriented communication. The disengagement ratio and forward index distinguish high- and low-performing teams.