Communication networks and team performance: selecting members to network positions
This study examines how individuals come to occupy communication network positions and the effect of selection processes on group performance. Drawing on the Carnegie perspective and research on communication networks, we compare the performance of groups whose members receive their choice of who oc...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-08-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1141571/full |
| _version_ | 1797738405347459072 |
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| author | Jerry Guo Linda Argote Jonathan Kush Jisoo Park |
| author_facet | Jerry Guo Linda Argote Jonathan Kush Jisoo Park |
| author_sort | Jerry Guo |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This study examines how individuals come to occupy communication network positions and the effect of selection processes on group performance. Drawing on the Carnegie perspective and research on communication networks, we compare the performance of groups whose members receive their choice of who occupies which network position to the performance of groups whose members do not receive their choice. We integrate ideas from the Carnegie perspective with the social psychological literature on the recognition of expertise to theorize that when group members choose who occupies which network positions, individuals select themselves and others into network positions that best suit their skillsets. The selection process allows groups to match individual member expertise to network position, thereby improving performance. We test this hypothesis in a laboratory study manipulating how members are assigned to positions in a centralized communication network. We find individuals who communicate more during training are more likely to be chosen as the central member, and that their communication activity explains the effect of choosing the central member on performance. Supplemental analyses suggest that groups allowed to select their central member performed as well as, and often better than, groups whose central member was randomly assigned. Our results contribute to the Carnegie perspective by demonstrating that the intra-team processes that develop a team’s network help explain their performance. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T13:42:23Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9443962baf45475d951e6b9ea6e7210c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T13:42:23Z |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-9443962baf45475d951e6b9ea6e7210c2023-08-23T13:41:18ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782023-08-011410.3389/fpsyg.2023.11415711141571Communication networks and team performance: selecting members to network positionsJerry Guo0Linda Argote1Jonathan Kush2Jisoo Park3Frankfurt School of Finance and Management, Frankfurt, GermanyTepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, United StatesCharlton College of Business, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, Dartmouth, MA, United StatesSchool of Management, Clark University, Worcester, MA, United StatesThis study examines how individuals come to occupy communication network positions and the effect of selection processes on group performance. Drawing on the Carnegie perspective and research on communication networks, we compare the performance of groups whose members receive their choice of who occupies which network position to the performance of groups whose members do not receive their choice. We integrate ideas from the Carnegie perspective with the social psychological literature on the recognition of expertise to theorize that when group members choose who occupies which network positions, individuals select themselves and others into network positions that best suit their skillsets. The selection process allows groups to match individual member expertise to network position, thereby improving performance. We test this hypothesis in a laboratory study manipulating how members are assigned to positions in a centralized communication network. We find individuals who communicate more during training are more likely to be chosen as the central member, and that their communication activity explains the effect of choosing the central member on performance. Supplemental analyses suggest that groups allowed to select their central member performed as well as, and often better than, groups whose central member was randomly assigned. Our results contribute to the Carnegie perspective by demonstrating that the intra-team processes that develop a team’s network help explain their performance.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1141571/fullcommunication networkscentralitynetwork positionsexpertisegroup performance |
| spellingShingle | Jerry Guo Linda Argote Jonathan Kush Jisoo Park Communication networks and team performance: selecting members to network positions Frontiers in Psychology communication networks centrality network positions expertise group performance |
| title | Communication networks and team performance: selecting members to network positions |
| title_full | Communication networks and team performance: selecting members to network positions |
| title_fullStr | Communication networks and team performance: selecting members to network positions |
| title_full_unstemmed | Communication networks and team performance: selecting members to network positions |
| title_short | Communication networks and team performance: selecting members to network positions |
| title_sort | communication networks and team performance selecting members to network positions |
| topic | communication networks centrality network positions expertise group performance |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1141571/full |
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