From Different Individuals to Diverse Teams

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From Different Individuals to Diverse Teams

• Complexities in Studying and Harnessing Group
  Cognitive Resources
• David A. HarrisonThe Pennsylvania State
  University

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Guideposts for Talk

• Promise and Peril of Teams -- via Diversity
• Composition From Differences to Diversity Types
• diversity-as-variety what it is (not)
• operationalizing variety as group cognitive
  resource
• numbers indices
• distinction from other diversity types
• proper level of abstraction (?)
• content, structure, network ties (?)
• optimal amount of variety non-monotonicity (?)
• combinations / co-alignment w/other diversity
  types (?)
• Teams as Info Processors Leveraging Variety (?)

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The Promise of Teams

• Basic unit of task completion in orgs
• often responsible for org-level directions (TMT)
• continuing upward trend in use, ditto for
  research
• Interest arises from inherent complexity
  btw-team variance in dispersion, or differences
  in differences
• W/in-team Diffs Create Cognitive Horsepower
• Diverse teams
• hold access richer knowledge bases for tasks
• allow broader bandwidth of information processing
• Studied (mainly) as demographic differences

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Differences to Diversity
Take 1Better Angelsof Dissimilarity
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The Peril of Teams

• Team diffs are tough to manage, tough to study
• motivational complications from interdependence
• perform multiple tasks, sequentially and
  simultaneously
• lots of simultaneous ( possibly noxious)
  differences
• Teams Go Boom
• Teams Go Pfffffffft
• Diverse teams
• communicate poorly, reach impasse, explode in
  conflict
• suppress voice, cue member shirking or effort
  reduction
• Studied (mainly) as demographic differences

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Differences to Diversity
Take 2Demon of The Other
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What Diversity Is Not

• Profusion of seemingly contradictory (angels v.
  demons) theory confusion of variables, labels,
• Demographic dissimilarity, distance, difference,
  disagreement,, dispersion, ____ (insert favorite
  d-word here), heterogeneity
• KSA diffs, VBA diffs, personality diffs,
  background diffs
• What is our collective narrative really about?
• Not about / diversity isnt
• a property of individuals (breadth is)
• a property of teams per se instead, a property
  of the composition of an individual attribute
  within teams
• only surface-level differences (multiple,
  confounded)
• one thing

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What Diversity Is

• Sense-making of domain via formal typology
  (Harrison Klein, 2007, AMR)
• Diversity is configural property of teams
• the distribution of differences among members
  within a unit with respect to a particular
  feature, X, such as functional background,
  tenure, ethnicity, satisfaction, work ethic, pay,
  individualism, etc.
• a typology of three things
• Variety,
• Separation, or
• Disparity

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Defining Variety

• Differences on attribute V, representing kind,
  category of unique (access to) knowledge
• configuration of cognition likely V constructs
  are distinctive, non-overlapping ...
• knowledge, skills, abilities (KSAs)
• task familiarity, functional background
• Foundational theories law of requisite variety,
  resource heterogeneity, groups as info processors
• Frequently predicted outcomes
• more creativity innovation greater unit
  flexibility
• higher decision quality

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Illustrating Variety
Minimum
Moderate
Maximum
every member is or comes from same kind as
everyone else
every member is or comes from different kind from
everyone else
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Operationalizing Variety

• Variety idea difference is uniqueness
  distance is irrelevant beyond being distinct
• If no one unique on V, index should be zero
  maximum when everyone is unique on attribute
• For meaningful index, V must be nominal scale
• Blaus Index Shannon/Teachman/Entropy
• Minimum 0
• Maximum all in different categories
• Both increase with group size, of categories or
  potential sources of info (species!) K
• Blau maxed at (K-1)/K, which can be close to 1

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Defining Separation

• Differences on attribute S, representing
  standpoint, position on (lateral) continuum
• configuration of feeling (toward a target)
  likely S constructs are views, disagreement,
  opposition on ...
• preferences, opinions, evaluations
• attitudes, values
• Foundational theories similarity-attraction,
  ASA, social categorization, social identity
• Frequently predicted outcomes
• less cohesiveness, lower trust,
• more conflict, more social disintegration

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Illustrating Separation
Minimum
Moderate
Maximum
every member has same position on continuum
two polarized factions at ends of continuum
extreme bimodal
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Operationalizing Separation

• Separation idea difference is distance
  direction not critical, just space between
  members
• If no differences, distances on S are zero
  maximum when sum of distances is largest
• For meaningful distance, S must be interval scale
• Standard Deviation Avg. Euclidean Distance
• Minimum 0
• Maximum polarized extremes
• Do not increase with group size
• Same metric as underlying variable Ss not
  comparable
• Divide by n (not n-1)

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Defining Disparity

• Differences on attribute D, representing share,
  proportion of socially valued assets, resources
• configuration of dominance likely D constructs
  are concentration of ...
• pay, compensation
• prestige, status, power, authority
• Disparity is asymmetric direction matters
• Foundational theories distributive injustice
  (relative dep), social stratification, status
  chars
• Frequently predicted outcomes
• higher w/in unit competition
• reduced voice, less input (from lower members)

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Illustrating Disparity
Minimum
Moderate
Maximum
every member has an equal portion
one member is rich, all the rest are
(completely) impoverished
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Operationalizing Disparity

• Disparity idea difference is relative ownership
  direction, size on D are crucial
• If all have equal share of D, index should be
  zero maximum when 1 king, n-1 pawns
• For meaningful index, D must be ratio scale
• Coefficient of Variation Gini (Herfindahl)
• Minimum 0
• Maximum single owner on top, rest penniless
  
• Both increase with group size, Gini less so
• Gini (Herfindahl) is concentration ratio
• Both are appropriately asymmetric

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Research Team Example

• Studying patient experience of hospital care
• Team V (max variety)
• Members differ in formative discipline
• 1 psychologist, 1 sociologist, 1 economist, 1
  anthropologist, 1 linguist, 1 administrator, 1
  human factors engineer, and 1 GP
• Team S (max separation)
• Members differ in views on interpretive methods
• Half of the members revere it half believe it is
  worthless
• Team D (max disparity)
• Members differ in status, (power to allocate)
  resources
• One member is a highly esteemed and published
  professor and the others are nascent graduate
  students

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Dude.

• Its slide 19 (!) already. What happened to
  team cognitive resources? And what IS cognition
  (ask George)?
• Team cognitive resources are embedded / inhered
  in knowledge variety.
• What content, abstraction of knowledge matters?
• Are diffs in knowledge structures also variety?
• Wheres the connection to network connections?
• Is it always better to have more variety?
• Do the other diversity types trump variety?
• Doesnt team process matter?

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Variety of Content

• What are the fundamental V dimensions for teams
  in organizations, in terms of knowledge content,
  information?
• What about conjunctivity of V inputs?
• Is elevation (high mean) on g a substitute for
  variety?

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Task-Relatedness for V

• Pelled (1996), Lawrence (1997) tasks rule (bow
  down to their sovereignty)
• Characteristics from a task analysis / specific
  KSAs -- pick content that fits the task --
  seems particularly unsatisfying theoretically
• Defining on the DV (almost tautological?)

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What Level of Abstraction?

• Back to team V studying patient experiences
• 1 psychologist, 1 sociologist, 1 economist, 1
  anthropologist, 1 linguist, 1 administrator, 1
  human factors engineer, and 1 GP
• What if they were . . .
• 1 social psychologist, 1 clinical psychologist, 1
  neuropsychologist, 1 cognitive psychologist, 1
  developmental psychologist, 1 I-O psychologist, 1
  engineering psychologist, 1 psychometrician,
• How can variety capture or accommodate
  hierarchies of categories?

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Variety of Structures

• What about variety the schemas, models, cognitive
  systems in which knowledge is stored?
• Divergent mental models
• for taskwork
• for teamwork
• Knowledge of process or processing (combining,
  construction) of knowledge

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Ties to Ties

• What are the most likely network structures that
  give rise to, correspond to, or follow from
• Variety?
• Separation?
• Disparity?

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Variety and Networks

• Where does variety come from?
• different caches of knowledge
• diverging paths of prior experience
• non-overlapping external (weak and strong) ties

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Can There be Too Much V?

• Variety predicted to have generally ? effects
• but, too many non-overlapping info, unique
  content sources lead to Tower of Babel
  (representational gaps)?

• can the optimallevel of varietybe predicted?
• what does it depend on?

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But, Isnt Varietyin Isolation too Simple?

• Yes. More realistically ...
• All units/teams are simultaneously diverse on
  many individual attributes multivariate
• Possible, even likely, that V effects depend
  strongly on S, D co-alignment within the team
• In other words, V and S and D can all be high (or
  low) within a team, but covariation can be ...
• positive or negative (deepened faultline), or
• zero (cross-cut attributes), but
• never perfect (max on one always moderate on
  other)

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Muzzling Variety

• Much knowledge is contestable
• whats right demonstrability versus preference
• whats right reflection of self-interest
• politicized knowledge
• Knowledge sharing and use is discounted /
  exaggerated by team member status

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Maximum SeparationTrumps Moderate Variety?
maximumseparation
maximumseparation
Negative or positive within-unit covariation of S
and V(strong faultline)
Zero within-unit covariation of S and
V(cross-cut)
a
a
b
e
moderatevariety
moderatevariety
c
b
d
f
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Moderate DisparityTrumps Moderate Variety?
moderatedisparity
moderatedisparity
Negative (or positive) within-unit covariation of
D and V(strong faultline)
Zero within-unit covariation of D and
V(cross-cut)
a
a
b
e
moderatevariety
moderatevariety
c
b
d
f
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Harnessing Variety

• Diversity of knowledge ? knowledge of diversity
• What are team processes, structures, contexts
  for translating to team outcomes what
  facilitates knowledge transfer?
• Having V is not enough need ...
• recognition
• use

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Recognizing Variety

• How or why do teams (fail to) pay attention to
  explicit and tacit V?
• motivation to share unique knowledge voice
• motivation to consider, elicit unique knowledge
• psychological safety learning orientation
• expectancy violations

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Leveraging Variety

• How can teams (or leaders) exercise V to
  facilitate performance?
• superordinate identity
• team incentive / positive outcome interdependence
• transactive memory systems
• social networks within team brokers
• cross-talking
• performance attributions, esp. for failure

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Thanks for Coming!!!

• and thanks to George ...