Using process mining to identify models of group decision making in chat data

This paper introduces process modeling and mining as an approach to process analysis for CSCL. This approach is particularly relevant for collaborative learning that takes a project-based form, and is applied in this study to online chat data from teams working on a complex task. The groups differed in terms of the number of members and the amount of scaffolding aimed at group processes and task requirements. The models, produced using the HeuristicsMiner algorithm, showed that the group with fewer members that received more instruction in the task requirements had a more linear decision-making process than the group that received instruction in group processes, however neither were an example of a linear, unitary phase model. This approach has relevance both for CSCL research methods and for providing feedback to students on their decision-making processes.