Chapter 2: How Remote Work is Redefining Teamwork: A Systematic Literature Review on the Consequences of Remote Work for Team Processes and Team Emergent States

The transition to remote work during and after the COVID-19 pandemic has reignited research interest in how remote work affects work-related outcomes. However, the majority of studies and literature reviews to date have focused almost exclusively on individual-level effects. This literature review analyzes 38 studies to evaluate the impact of remote work on team processes and emergent states such as team communication, coordination, planning, cohesion, and trust, as well as social isolation. The findings indicate that social isolation is the most studied construct and the most affected social outcome of remote work. Additionally, the findings highlight challenges and opportunities for social relationships and communication and how the adoption of collaboration technologies and the regulation of remote spaces offer potential means to mitigate some of these challenges. This review underscores a large gap between the remote work literature and the team process literature and the need for further research that links these two research streams to improve understanding and inform future remote work strategies. We recommend that future research use the input–mediator–output (IMO) model in the context of remote work, as it can provide guidance in developing hypotheses and interpreting findings.