Group idea generation and simulation

Electronic brainstorming (EBS) to improve the process and outcomes of group decision making is an artifact of Information Systems legacy. Despite three decades of research with EBS in an effort to become a key resource of organizational performance, its performance when compared to that of nominal is inconclusive because of the recent debate over its usefulness in terms of productivity. Subsequent researchers have directed our attention to the re-examination of cognitive stimulation, which is considered the major benefit in computer-based idea generation, to explain the performance singularity in computer-based groups. While both cognitive and motivational factors that moderate and mediate the group-interaction process remain unexplored, individual differences that are tightly linked to creative behavior have been largely ignored to account for the discrepancy in performance. Since simulations have been widely used in situations where an outcome does not meet the assumptions, the notion of a group simulator and detailed simulation mechanisms are introduced to examine the potential effects of individual differences on the performance of computer-based idea generation groups. In addition, two prior studies that empirically explored cognitive mechanisms with the group simulator are showcased along with six propositions to initiate future research.