The data also corroborated prior research indicating that projects graded
from a task-orientation perspective (i.e., completion of a deliverable) pointed
more toward a cooperative mode of working together whereas projects evaluated
with a synthesis, or process, orientation tended to be more collaborative in nature
(Paulus, 2005). While participants reported a comfort level in assigning segments
of work early in the development of a task deliverable, when it can time to
finalize their deliverable, participants reported that the introduction of social
media technologies did not seem to replace the need for students to work
collaboratively.