Balthazard et al. (2008) examined the mediational role of leadership and group member
interaction styles in comparing virtual and faceto-face teams. They reported that group members in face-to-face teams were generally more
cohesive, were more accepting of a group’s decisions, and exhibited a greater amount of synergy
than did virtual teams. Face-to-face teams exhibited a greater amount of constructive interaction in comparison with virtual teams, which
scored significantly higher on defensive interaction styles.
Malhotra et al. (2007) collected survey, interview, and observational data on virtual teams
to identify the leadership practices of effective
leaders of virtual teams. These leadership
practices included the ability to (a) establish
and maintain trust through the use of communication technology, (b) ensure that distributed
diversity is understood and appreciated,
(c) manage effectively virtual work-life cycles,
(d ) monitor team progress using technology,
(e) enhance visibility of virtual members within
the team and outside the organization, and
( f ) let individual team members benefit from
the team.