Harnessing Demographic Differences in Organizations: What Moderates the Effects of Workplace Diversity?

To account for the double-edged nature of demographic workplace diversity (i.e. relational demography, work group diversity, and organizational diversity) effects on social integration, performance and well-being related variables, research has moved away from simple main effect approaches and started examining variables that moderate these effects. While there is no shortage of primary studies of the conditions under which diversity leads to positive or negative outcomes, it remains unclear which contingency factors make it work. Using the Categorization-Elaboration Model (van Knippenberg, DeDreu, & Homan 2004) as our theoretical lens we review variables moderating the effects of workplace diversity on social integration, performance and well-being outcomes, focusing on factors that organizations and managers have control over (i.e. strategy, unit design, HR, leadership, climate/culture, and individual differences). We point out avenues for future research and conclude with practical implications

Improvisation and Performance in Software Development Teams: The Role of Geographic Dispersion

Software development teams are increasingly faced with unanticipated obstacles to effectiveness that require extemporaneous actions. Team improvisation has been identified as an important team situated response to emergent challenges to team effectiveness. However, the efficacy of team improvisation is not well understood in the context of software development teams—which perform complex, knowledge intensive tasks. We examine the efficacy of team improvisation in enhancing team effectiveness and identify team geographic dispersion as an important boundary condition. We test our hypotheses using data from 299 team leaders and members belonging to 71 teams. We find that team improvisation positively affects team performance, and that the degree of team geographic dispersion moderates the relationship between improvisation and team effectiveness. Theoretical and practical implications are offered

Microdynamics in diverse teams:A review and integration of the diversity and stereotyping literatures

Research on the consequences of diversity in teams continues to produce inconsistent results. We review the recent developments in diversity research and identify two shortcomings. First, an understanding of the microdynamics affecting processes and outcomes in diverse teams is lacking. Second, diversity research has tended to treat different social categories as equivalent and thus not considered how members’ experiences may be affected by their social category membership. We address these shortcomings by reviewing research on stereotypes, which indicates that stereotypes initiate reinforcing microdynamics among (a) attributions of a target team member’s warmth and competence, (b) perceiving members’ behavior toward the target team member, and (c) the target team member’s behavior. Our review suggests that perceivers’ impression formation motivation is the key determinant of the extent to which perceivers continue to treat a target based on categorization. On the basis of our review, we provide an integrative perspective and corresponding model that outlines these MIcrodynamics of Diversity and Stereotyping in Teams (MIDST) and indicates how stereotyping can benefit as well as harm team functioning. We discuss how this integrative perspective on the MIDST relates to the social categorization and the information/decision-making perspective, set a research agenda, and discuss the managerial implications

Identity asymmetries:An experimental investigation of social identity and information exchange in multiteam systems

Many complex organizational tasks are performed by networks of teams, or “multiteam systems.” A critical challenge in multiteam systems is how to promote information exchange across teams. In three studies, we investigate how identity “asymmetries”—differences between teams in terms of whether the team or overarching system constitutes their primary focus of identification—affect interteam information sharing and performance. In Study 1, we manipulate teams’ foci of identification (team vs. system focused) in a sample of 84 five-member teams working in one of 21 four-team multiteam systems performing a computer strategy simulation. We find that, while system-focused teams shared information equally with all teams, team-focused teams shared less information with system-focused teams than they did with other team-focused teams. Interteam information sharing positively predicted interteam performance. In Study 2, we test the assumptions underlying our theory in a vignette experiment, demonstrating that team-focused individuals adopt instrumental motives toward interteam interaction. Finally, in Study 3, we investigate the implications of system composition in terms of team identity foci by means of a simulation study based on the empirical results of Study 1. The results of the simulation yield novel propositions about the nonlinear effects of social identity in multiteam systems

Mindfulness at work : multilevel analysis from an interpersonal perspective

Tesis de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Facultad de Psicología, leída el 13-09-2018Mindfulness consiste en estar completamente atento al momento presente (Brown y Ryan, 2003). En el ámbito laboral, el mindfulness se ha convertido en un fructífero área de intervención e investigación (Hyland, Lee y Mills, 2015). Una revisión reciente mostró que los empleados con mayor mindfulness son una ventaja organizacional, ya que muestran mayor engagement, vitalidad y rendimiento (Good et al., 2016). También hay beneficios personales: el mindfulness en el trabajo se ha asociado con la regulación emocional, la salud y menor estrés (Mesmer-Magnus, Manapragada, Viswesvaran, & Allen, 2017). Sin embargo, su impacto sobre las variables de otras personas es casi desconocido (Creswell, 2017). Las únicas excepciones son que el mindfulness del líder se relacionaba con el rendimiento de los empleados (Reb, Narayanan, & Chaturvedi, 2014), y el mindfulness de los empleados con la satisfacción de los clientes (Beach et al., 2013)...Mindfulness refers to paying full attention to the present moment (Brown & Ryan, 2003). At work, mindfulness has become a fruitful area for intervention and investigation (Hyland, Lee, & Mills, 2015). A recent review showed that mindful employees are an organizational asset, for they show more engagement, vitality and performance (Good et al., 2016). There are personal benefits too: mindfulness at work is associated with emotion regulation, health and lower stress (Mesmer-Magnus, Manapragada, Viswesvaran, & Allen, 2017). However, the impact on other people’s outcomes is almost unknown (Creswell, 2017). The only exceptions are that leaders’ mindfulness was related to employees’ performance (Reb, Narayanan, & Chaturvedi, 2014), and employees’ mindfulness to clients’ satisfaction (Beach et al., 2013). No research has investigated the crossover of mindfulness at work beyond this. Moreover, psychological states at work are not static, but spill over to the home domain and cross over to the employee’s partner (Bakker & Demerouti, 2013)...Fac. de PsicologíaTRUEunpu