Examining small group dynamics in cross-cultural telecollaboration

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Sept. 30, 2026, 1:06 p.m.

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Oct. 22, 2026, 7:43 p.m.

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Oct. 22, 2026, 7:43 p.m.

access-status:

open.access

bitstream:

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bitstream_txt:

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collection:

Volume 30 Number 1, 2026

contributor.author:

Chen, Yi-Mei Yeh, Hui-Chin

date.accessioned:

2026-09-26T02:14:08Z

date.copyright:

2026

date.issued:

2026-09-28

description.abstract:

Telecollaborative virtual exchange (VE) is widely recognized for promoting second language (L2) learners’ intercultural communicative competence, yet the development of group dynamics in these environments remains underexplored. Drawing on Complex Dynamic Systems Theory (CDST), this study investigates how group dynamics evolved during an eight-week VR-mediated telecollaborative project involving 64 Taiwanese and 13 New Zealand university students. Using a longitudinal qualitative design, data from reflective accounts, learning portfolios, and online meeting videos were analyzed to trace evolving interactional trajectories across groups. The findings indicate that linguistic proficiency and communication-related anxiety shaped initial participation conditions, yet groups with similar proficiency profiles developed markedly different trajectories over time. These trajectories emerged through dynamic interactions among task involvement, moral duty, status, leadership, and intermember relations. By integrating CDST with VE research, this study offers a dynamic account of how task and social dimensions of group dynamics co-evolve over time and generate feedback loops that either facilitate or constrain group functioning. Drawing on the adaptive processes observed in more successful groups, the study also proposes pedagogical strategies for fostering more equitable and interactionally supportive online L2 learning environments.

endingpage:

23

format.extent:

23

identifier.citation:

Chen, Y. M., & Yeh, H.-C. (2026). Examining small group dynamics in cross-cultural telecollaboration. Language Learning & Technology, 30(1), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.64152/10125/73713

identifier.doi:

https://doi.org/10.64152/10125/73713

identifier.issn:

1094-3501

identifier.uri:

https://hdl.handle.net/10125/73713

language:

en

number:

1

publicationname:

Language Learning & Technology

publisher:

University of Hawaii National Foreign Language Resource Center Center for Language & Technology

rights.license:

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License

rights.uri:

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

site_url:

/item/10125-73713/

startingpage:

1

subject:

group dynamics, cross-cultural collaboration, telecollaboration, L2 learning, English as a foreign language (EFL)

title:

Examining small group dynamics in cross-cultural telecollaboration

type:

Article Text

volume:

30