Organizational Behavior, 13e Instructor’s Resource Guide
Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 7-9
• As a team size continues to grow, communication and coordination problems often set in, and in turn
satisfaction may decline while turnover, absenteeism, social loafing, and team logistical problems
may increase.
• A good size for problem-solving teams is between five and seven members.
Team Composition
Team composition is the mix of abilities, skills, backgrounds, and experiences that the members bring to
the team.
• FIRO-B theory (with “FIRO” standing for fundamental interpersonal orientation) identifies
differences in how people relate to one another in teams based on their needs to express and receive
feelings of inclusion, control, and affection.
• In homogeneous teams, members may find it very easy to work together but they may also suffer
performance limitations if their collective skills, experiences and perspectives are not a good match
for complex skills.
• In heterogeneous teams, a wide pool of talent and viewpoints is available for problem solving but this
diversity may also create difficulties as members try to define problems, share information, and
handle interpersonal conflicts.
• Status congruence occurs when a person’s position within the group is equivalent in status to
positions held outside of the group. Status is a person’s relative rank, prestige, or standing in a group.
Team Diversity
• Team diversity in the form of different values, personalities, experiences, demographics, and cultures
among the members, is an important team input.
• In homogeneous teams where members are very similar to one another, teamwork usually isn’t much
of a problem. The members typically find it quite easy to work together and enjoy the team
experience.
• In heterogeneous teams where members are very dissimilar, teamwork problems are more likely. The
mix of diverse personalities, experiences, backgrounds, ages, and other personal characteristics may
create difficulties as members try to define problems, share information, mobilize talents, and deal
with obstacles or opportunities.
• Diverse teams have more resources and viewpoints available to engage in problem solving, especially
when tasks are complex and demanding. Yet these advantages are not automatic; the diversity must
be tapped if the team is to realize the performance benefits.
• Diversity–consensus dilemma is the tendency for diversity in groups to create process difficulties
even as it offers improved potential for problem solving.
• This diversity and performance relationship is apparent in interesting research newly reported
in the area of collective intelligence – the ability of a group or team to perform well across a
range of tasks.
• Figure 7.5 in the textbook illustrates member diversity, stages of team development, and team
performance.