Topic 5 - Groups Flashcards
What is objective diversity?
Differences in observable attributes or demographic characteristics such as age, gender, race, educational achievement and socio-economic status.
What is perceived diversity?
The way in which people characterise themselves as similar or dissimilar to other people in their group i.e. strongly religious people may attach more salience to religious beliefs when assessing the diversity of someone else.
What is psychological diversity?
AKA underlying diversity - refers to the underlying attributes such as skills, abilities, personality characteristics, attitudes, beliefs and values. They are more subtle and difficult to measure. They are more important as people get to know each other.
What are the two dominant paradigms in the diversity literature?
Social identity perspective - used to examine team members interpersonal relationships and commitment to the team.
Information processing/decision making perspective is used to examine team performance
The two paradigms are unable to be separated due to commitment of and relationships between team members will influence decision making and performance.
Linking statement
Evidence of positive and negative effects of diversity is highly inconsistent and there is considerable debate about the effects of diversity on an individuals commitment to a team and team performance and functioning.
People relate more easily to similar people. Objective diversity is more important in the early stages of team development but psychological diversity, such as attitudes and values are more important later.
How does objective diversity impact on commitment?
Individuals who are different from their team in demographic details are less committed to the org, less likely to remain and are more likely to be absent from work.
How does objective diversity impact on team performance and functioning?
Watson et al. - homogenous groups worked better together and performed better than diverse groups initially, however, over time, diverse groups became more effective than the homogenous groups at identifying problems and generating alternative solutions.
How does perceived diversity impact on commitment?
The more dissimilar they perceive themselves to be from the team, the less committed they are. Voluntary turnover increases and there is lesser involvement in the task.
How does perceived diversity impact on team functioning?
When group is perceived to be diverse, there is reduced levels of group cohesion.
How does social identity perspective impact on diversity?
Social identity perspective on identity suggests perceived diversity is socially constructed and situation specific. The mix of people and the situation determines which type of diversity matters most. Social identity perspective combines an understanding of the individual-level processes with the acknowledgement of the social context.
Research into team commitment suggests that too much diversity can have negative consequences for group dynamics and may compromise affective elements like group cohesion and commitment. It may increase group conflict if members have different incompatible ways of communicating. Turnover rates may be high if teams are diverse, partly as a result of weaker social relationships and diminished team cohesion.
What are moderating effects of diversity?
Some moderating factors can be task complexity, pro diversity beliefs within the group, high task interdependence also enhances interpersonal contact, reducing the effects of diversity.
