Using wikis in team collaboration: A media capability perspective

Wikis are widely acknowledged to be capable of promoting team collaboration. However, previous studies have not examined how the characteristics of the wiki media influence team members’ perceived collaboration effectiveness in the educational context. Drawing on media synchronicity theory, we examine five wiki capabilities and whether these capabilities are perceived to be effective in facilitating collaboration. Results based on data from 83 undergraduate students in 15 teams show that reprocessability, no other wiki capabilities, plays a dominant role in securing a more favorable evaluation of collaboration effectiveness by students. The findings and their implications on theory and practice are discussed.