Abstract
Although researchers have highlighted the importance of diversity beliefs (i.e., team members' perceived value of diversity) for the elaboration of information in teams, little attention has been paid to whether and how diversity beliefs can be shaped. Drawing on theory and research on team diversity beliefs, we propose that diversity beliefs are more effectively influenced by interventions using a promotion (compared with a prevention) focus toward diversity and personal testimonial (compared with factual) knowledge. Results from an experiment conducted with 175 teams revealed that both a promotion focus and personal testimonial knowledge independently contributed to more positive diversity beliefs and consequently increased team elaboration of task-relevant information as well as integration of different perspectives. Our results reveal key factors that can influence diversity beliefs and underscore the pivotal role of diversity beliefs in improving the extent to which team members elaborate information and integrate diverse perspectives.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1-18 |
Number of pages | 18 |
Journal | Journal of Organizational Behavior |
Volume | 44 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Jan 2023 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:We are grateful for the helpful guidance and constructive feedback from associate editor Brad Harris and the two anonymous reviewers. We also thank Astrid Homan, Daan van Knippenberg, Lisa Nishii, Lisa Dragoni, Bruce Avolio, and participants in the Rotterdam School of Managment PhD seminar and the University of Zurich OB reading group for their helpful comments on earlier drafts of this article. We also thank Natalia Batres Sierra for her assistance with data collection. Open Access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Authors. Journal of Organizational Behavior published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.