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1 – 10 of 374Demographic faultlines (i.e., potential subgroup splits based on demographic attributes) have been argued to have effects over and above those of diversity. Yet, faultlines, much…
Abstract
Demographic faultlines (i.e., potential subgroup splits based on demographic attributes) have been argued to have effects over and above those of diversity. Yet, faultlines, much like diversity, do not seem to have positive or negative effects on performance per se, but to be affected by contextual variables as well as intermediate outcomes, such as relationship conflict. Relationship conflicts, a major threat to teamwork, are particularly likely to arise between subgroups. Thus, with the objective to shed some light on why and how exactly faultlines impact group outcome, we investigate the effect of faultline strength and distance on performance through relationship conflict as well as the effect of faultline strength on performance via relationship conflict, contingent on the level of faultline distance. To test our hypotheses we used data gathered in a laboratory setting with 267 graduate students. Results provide strong support for the extension of the faultline model.
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Jing Zhang, Qiaozhuan Liang, Yue Zhang and Yuanmei (Elly) Qu
This study aims to focus on three types of team faultlines (separation-based faultlines, variety-based faultlines and disparity-based faultlines) and discuss the different ways…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to focus on three types of team faultlines (separation-based faultlines, variety-based faultlines and disparity-based faultlines) and discuss the different ways through which their configurational properties (faultline strength and faultline distance) affect team performance.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors adopted panel data regression analysis to test the model. Panel data of Chinese provincial party-government top cadres teams that covers 30 provincial areas from 2007 to 2012 were collected for data analyses.
Findings
The results revealed that separation-based faultline strength was negatively related to team performance, variety-based faultline strength had a U-shape relationship with team performance and disparity-based faultline strength had an inversed U-shape relationship with team performance. In addition, separation-based and disparity-based faultline distances served as moderators enhancing the curvilinear relationship between faultline strength and team performance. Notably, variety-based faultline distance failed to exaggerate the U-shape relationship between variety-based faultline strength and team performance; however, the relationship changed based on different levels of variety-based faultline distance.
Originality/value
This study discussed team configurations based on three types of faultlines by comparing differences between team configurations reflected by diversity and faultline strength. Settled in Chinese political context, this study empirically tested the interaction effects between faultline strength and distance on team performance.
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Si Qian, Yinpu Zhang and Pengzhou Kuai
The purpose of this paper is to explore the effect of a team’s personality faultlines on entrepreneurial performance. Additionally, this paper verifies the moderating effect of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the effect of a team’s personality faultlines on entrepreneurial performance. Additionally, this paper verifies the moderating effect of shared leadership on the connection between the two varies. The authors focus on the upper echelons theory and social identity theory as well as personality faultlines in entrepreneurial teams.
Design/methodology/approach
An online survey was conducted using data collected in China. Data from 618 members from 144 new venture teams were collected to examine the authors’ hypothesis.
Findings
The authors find a U-shaped relationship between the strength of entrepreneurial teams' personality-faultline and entrepreneurial performance. Additionally, shared leadership negatively moderates this U-shaped relationship. Specifically, when the entrepreneurial team has a high level of shared leadership, both the positive and negative relationships between the strength of the personality faultlines and entrepreneurial performance are weaker.
Originality/value
The research offers important theoretical and practical implications for the formation of entrepreneurial teams.
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Daniel Tidbury, Steven F. Cahan and Li Chen
Board faultlines, which reflect intrinsic divisions of board members into relatively homogeneous subgroups, are associated with poor firm performance. This paper aims to extend…
Abstract
Purpose
Board faultlines, which reflect intrinsic divisions of board members into relatively homogeneous subgroups, are associated with poor firm performance. This paper aims to extend the existing board faultline research by examining how acquisition deal size moderates the negative implications of board faultlines.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper uses a sample of acquisitions and a quantitative research approach to conduct statistical analysis.
Findings
Using a sample of acquisitions announced between 2007 and 2016, this paper finds evidence suggesting that strong faultlines are associated with poorer acquisition outcomes in the long-term, but not in the short term. Further, this paper finds that the effect of faultline strength on long-term acquisition outcomes is weaker for larger acquisition deals than smaller acquisition deals. The findings are consistent with deal size moderating the relation between faultlines and acquisition outcomes.
Research limitations/implications
This paper addresses possible endogeneity through firm fixed effects and instrumental variable analysis. Although this paper provides evidence on the moderating role of deal size in the context of faultlines, future research could examine the role of additional moderators, such as pro-diversity, trust, board leadership and board and task characteristics.
Practical implications
The findings suggest that boards need to be aware of situations where the negative effects of faultlines are more likely to come to the fore. For example, faultlines are more likely to play a role in more routine, obscure monitoring than for high-profile strategic decisions.
Originality/value
The study is multidisciplinary as it draws on the management, organizational behaviour and psychology and finance literature. It contributes to the developing literature on faultlines in several important ways. First, this paper supports their view that faultlines have adverse effects on board performance by showing that faultlines negatively impact discrete strategic investment decisions. Second, this paper provides evidence that deals size moderates the faultline-acquisition performance relation, indicating that the role of faultlines is contextual. Third, this paper finds evidence that suggests investors do not factor in board faultlines when responding to acquisition announcements.
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Yue Zhang, Qiaozhuan Liang and Peihua Fan
Combining the punctuated equilibrium theory with the faultline theory, the purpose of this paper is to focus on member change of strategic core role holders in teams.
Abstract
Purpose
Combining the punctuated equilibrium theory with the faultline theory, the purpose of this paper is to focus on member change of strategic core role holders in teams.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors test the model using data from 30 National Basketball Association teams covering 11 regular seasons, carrying out regression analyses.
Findings
This research illustrates how different types of job-related skills of core role holders that involved in member change might influence the team performance loss, and how team demographic faultlines would serve as a moderator.
Practical implications
This research demonstrates that punctuational change in a team is not always bad, flux in coordination and team performance loss could be avoided by staffing strategic core role based on specific job-related skill levels and manipulating team composition based on demographic attributes.
Originality/value
The research model initially provides an integrated perspective of member change, core role and faultline theory to explain the team process for punctuational change.
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The purpose of this paper is to test the conditional effect of team composition on team performance; specifically, how collective team orientation, group consensus, faultline…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to test the conditional effect of team composition on team performance; specifically, how collective team orientation, group consensus, faultline configurations and trust among team members explain the objective performance of project teams in cross-cultural contexts.
Design/methodology/approach
Employing path analytical framework and bootstrap methods, the authors analyze data from a sample of 73 cross cultural project teams. Relying on ordinary least-squares regression, the authors estimate the direct and indirect effects of the moderated mediation model.
Findings
The findings demonstrate that the indirect effect of collective team orientation on performance through team trust is moderated by team member consensus, diversity heterogeneity and faultlines’ strength. By contrast, high dispersion among members, heterogeneous team configurations and strong team faultlines lead to low levels of trust and team performance.
Research limitations/implications
The specific context of the study (cross-cultural students’ work projects) may influence external validity and limit the generalization of the findings as well as the different compositions of countries-of-origin.
Practical implications
From a practical standpoint, these results may help practitioners understand how the emergence of trust contributes to performance. It will also help them comprehend the importance of managing teams while bearing in mind the cross-cultural contexts in which they operate.
Social implications
In order to foster team consensus and overcome the effects of group members’ cross-cultural dissimilarities as well as team faultlines, organizations should invest in improving members’ dedication, cooperation and trust before looking to achieve significant results, specially in heterogeneous teams and cross-cultural contexts.
Originality/value
The study advances organizational group research by showing the combined effect of team configurations and collective team orientation to overall team performance and by exploring significant constructs such as team consensus, team trust and diversity faultline strength to examine their possible moderated mediation role in the process.
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Yaowei Zhang, Tiantian Cao, Siqi Liu and Shuqi Chen
The inconsistent results shown in previous group faultline research have created a need for investigating the underlying mechanisms of the faultline's effects. This study focuses…
Abstract
Purpose
The inconsistent results shown in previous group faultline research have created a need for investigating the underlying mechanisms of the faultline's effects. This study focuses on clarifying the competing mediating roles of information diversity and team conflict in the nonlinear relationship between board faultlines (BF) and decision quality.
Design/methodology/approach
This study is empirically tested with the questionnaire data from 105 Chinese listed companies.
Findings
This study finds: (1) an inverted U-shaped curve relationship between BF and board decision quality and (2) that the joint mediating effect of team conflict and information diversity leads to the inverted U-shaped curve relationship between BF and decision quality. Specifically, BF shows a U-shaped curve relationship with team conflict and an inverted U-shaped curve relationship with information diversity. Either too weak or too strong faultlines will inhibit the positive effects of information diversity and amplify the negative effects of team conflicts, leading to low-quality decisions.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the research on: (1) board governance as it clarifies the effect of BF on the board decision-making process and its quality, which helps to open the black box of board decision-making and (2) group faultlines as it reveals how information diversity and team conflict can play a joint mediating role in the functioning of team faultlines.
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Lisa H. Nishii and Jack A. Goncalo
Despite the oft made argument that demographic diversity should enhance creativity, little is known about this relationship. We propose that group diversity, measured in terms of…
Abstract
Despite the oft made argument that demographic diversity should enhance creativity, little is known about this relationship. We propose that group diversity, measured in terms of demographic faultlines, affects creativity through its effects on group members’ felt psychological safety to express their diverse ideas and the quality of information sharing that takes place across subgroup boundaries. Further, we propose that the relationship between faultlines and creativity will be moderated by task interdependence and equality of subgroup sizes. Finally, we provide suggestions for how organizations can establish norms for self-verification and use accountability techniques to enhance creativity in diverse groups.
Top executive hubris is associated with positive/negative outcome. Little is known about the antecedent of hubris in top management team (TMT) and how they can be weakened to…
Abstract
Purpose
Top executive hubris is associated with positive/negative outcome. Little is known about the antecedent of hubris in top management team (TMT) and how they can be weakened to capitalize on TMT size and market complexity. This paper aims to address these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
This study draws on the social information processing theory. Subsequently, it proposes and tests an inverted U-shaped relationship between task-related faultlines and top executive hubris. Top management team size and complexity can weaken the relationship between them. Panel data were collected longitudinally from 2011 to 2016 on China's listed firm on growth enterprises board.
Findings
Hierarchical regression analyses indicate that medium task-related faultlines experience stronger than weak and strong faultlines. TMT size and market complexity can weaken the inverted U-shaped relationship between them.
Originality/value
This study provides pioneering evidence for an inverted U-shaped relationship between task-related faultlines and top executive hubris. These findings inform practice by suggesting a tipping point of team faultlines.
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Jin Yao, Xinmei Liu and Wenxin He
The purpose of this paper is to examine the curvilinear relationship between team informational faultlines and team creativity and the moderating effects of team humble leadership…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the curvilinear relationship between team informational faultlines and team creativity and the moderating effects of team humble leadership on the relationship.
Design/methodology/approach
The multisource and longitudinal survey data were collected from 85 teams. The authors conducted linear regression analyses to analyze the data.
Findings
The results indicate that the relationship between team informational faultlines and team creativity is inverted U-shaped and such relationship is stronger in teams with low levels of humble leadership.
Research limitations/implications
The research reconciles the mixed findings in prior research and enhances our understanding of the functionality of informational faultlines.
Practical implications
Team managers should seek optimal levels of informational faultlines and make diversity coexist with similarity when assembling a new working group so as to utilize the benefits of team composition diversity and fuel collective creativity. Team leaders should learn humble leadership skills to encourage open communication.
Originality/value
The research is the first to adopt and build on the social information processing (SIP) perspective to explain the curvilinear relationship between team informational faultlines and team creativity.
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