Transactive Memory Systems

A transactive memory system is a group-level memory system that often develops in close relationships and work teams. It involves the division of responsibility among group members with respect to the encoding, storage, retrieval, and communication of information from different knowledge areas and a shared awareness among group members about each member's knowledge responsibilities (or “who knows what”). For example, in a family, one parent may be responsible for knowing when the bills are due and what is needed at the grocery store, and the other may be responsible for knowing the children's schedules and how to fix things around the house. Or in a new product development team, one member may be responsible for all information related to prototype development while another member may ...