s displays harmed interrupters' task performance, while abstract displays did not. We conclude that y with an abstract representation of a collaborator's workload is optimal; it leads to better timing of interruptions without overwhelming the person viewing the display. Key words: computer-mediated communication and collaboration; virtual teams; laboratory experiments; attention; interruption; awareness History: Vallabh Sambamurthy, Senior Editor; Laku Chidambaram, Associate Editor. This paper was received November 28, 2004, and was with the authors 1 year and 11 months for 3 revisions.
Laura A. Dabbish, Robert E. Kraut