An important area in Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) is how gender affects trustbuilding and performance in virtual settings. This paper empirically investigates gender differences in two media, video and Instant Messaging, while performing negotiation tasks.The primary results indicate that: (1) female pairs perceive higher levels of trust than male pairs when gender information about the partner is either seen via the video channel or mutually revealed via the IM channel, and (2) male/female pairs have better performance outcomes than female pairs. The results imply that having females in the remote working teams may help teams achieve high levels of initial trust leading to cooperation and information sharing in virtual settings. In addition, the results suggest that gender diversity, as represented in male/female pairs, may be important to quality performance outcomes in collaborative work groups.

Knowledge sharing within an organisation is increasingly important in today's fast-moving and knowledgebased economy (Chow et al., 2000, Journal of Management Accounting, 12, 65-95; Bukowitz and Petrash, 1997, Research Technology Management, 40, 24-31). This empirical study examines the interaction effects of national culture and group members' relationship (in-group/out-group) on knowledgesharing attitude. A total of 197 Chinese undergraduate students and 111 American undergraduate students participated in the study. The first finding was that both Chinese and American students were more willing to share personal knowledge with in-group members than with out-group members. Furthermore, the results showed that same working experience between group members was more important than same national cultural background in determining people's attitude towards knowledge sharing. Another interesting finding was that Chinese participants were more willing to share personal information with an American stranger (out-group) than a Chinese stranger (in-group), while American participants showed no such difference. In summary, these findings indicate that a global organisation should take both national culture and in-group/out-group factors into consideration to facilitate knowledge sharing.

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Abstract. Qualitative analysis was used to investigate the nature of the interactions of different gender pairings doing a negotiation task via computermediated communication (CMC). Preliminary results indicate that female pairs used more language of fairness, saving face, and acknowledgement in their conversation than did male pairs. Male pairs made more procedural statements about meeting management and actions than female pairs. The study provides a preliminary understanding of how gender interactions may affect performance in CMC tasks.