title: How to increase the benefits of cooperation: Effects of training in transactive communication on cooperative learning.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Transactive communication means referring to and building on a learning partner's idea, by, for example, extending the partner's idea or interlinking the partner's idea with an idea of one's own. This transforms the partner's idea into a more elaborate one. Previous research found a positive relationship between students' transactive communication and their learning results when working in small groups.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To increase the benefits of cooperation, we developed and tested a module for training students in transactive communication. We assumed that this training would enhance students' transactive communication and also increase their knowledge acquisition during cooperative learning. Further, we distinguished between an actor's transactive communication and a learning partner's transactive communication and expected both to be positively associated with an actor's knowledge acquisition.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants were 80 university students.
  
  
  METHODS
  In an experiment with pre- and post-test measurements, transactive communication was measured by coding students' communication in a cooperative learning situation before training and in another cooperative learning situation after training. For the post-test cooperative learning situation, knowledge was pre-tested and post-tested.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Trained students outperformed controls in transactive communication and in knowledge acquisition. Positive training effects on actors' knowledge acquisition were partially mediated by the improved actors' transactive communication. Moreover, actors' knowledge acquisition was positively influenced by learning partners' transactive communication.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results show a meaningful increase in the benefits of cooperation through the training in transactive communication. Furthermore, findings indicate that students benefit from both elaborating on their partner's ideas and having their own ideas elaborated on.
authors.affiliation: University of Kassel, Germany.
authors.forename: Susanne
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9132-0568
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jurkowski
authors.affiliation: University of Kassel, Germany.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hänze
mesh_terms: D003142:Communication; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D019359:Knowledge; D007858:Learning / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology
keywords: cooperative learning; training; transactive communication