We're all in this (game) together: Transactive memory systems, social presence, and social information processing in video game teams

This dissertation examines transactive memory systems (TMS) in video game teams. Study 1 is a field study of 16,499 players of the video game League of Legends and uses survey and server data to explore the relationship between group composition (member self-selection and team size) and TMS. It also explores the mediating role of social presence. Study 2 is a League of Legends lab experiment comparing the effects of communication channel (text-chat vs. voice-chat) on the development of TMS and social presence in teams. Study 3, conducted concurrently with Study 2, tests Social Information Processing theory in the context of video game teams and examined the role of relational communication in the development of TMS.