Organization and Human Resources Department's Lecture

Theme：The Preventative Benefit of Group Diversification on Group Performance Decline: An Investigation with Latent Growth Models

Speaker：Jia Li（Eindhoven University of Technology）

Time：2019-11-26 12:00

Address：Room 706, Mingde Business Building

Language：English/Chinese

Abstract：

Taking the open systems perspective, we define group diversification (homogenization) as a process in which a group becomes more (less) diverse over time as new members join and/or existing members leave the group. Building upon the contingency approach to diversity and group adaptation literature, we argue: In an adverse task environment characterized with unexpected changes and ill-performing risks, group diversification benefits group performance change by reducing group performance decline in this environment. Group size increase, however, attenuates this preventative benefit of group diversification. Focusing on organizational tenure and gender, we studied 279 sales groups (3,277 individuals) in a large German financial consulting company from 2004 to 2008. In this period, a national legislative change prompted the company to withdraw its star product from the market and presented adversity to the sales groups. Results from latent growth models (LGMs) overall support our arguments. This research extends the beneficial view of diversity from a static theoretical space about groups’ being diverse to a dynamic one about groups’ becoming diverse.

Bio：

Jia Li (PhD) has been working as assistant professor in the School of Industrial Engineering and Innovation Sciences at Eindhoven University of Technology (The Netherlands) and in the Faculty of Biology and Psychology at University of Göttingen (Germany). She obtained PhD in Organizational Behavior from School of Business and Economics at University of Maastricht (The Netherlands) in 2011. Her work has appeared in major management and applied psychology journals, including Journal of Management Studies, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Applied Psychology: An International Review, Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, and so forth. She was the guest speaker or invited presenter at numerous international conferences and universities, including the 2018 Organizational Ecology conference (Cambridge University), 2013 Congress of European Association of Work and Organizational Psychology (EAWOP, Muenster), 2011 EAWOP Small Group Meeting (Chemnitz), Groningen University, Antwerp University, Peking University and so forth. She has won Best Conference Paper Award at three international conferences, including 2018 INGRoup conference (U.S.A), 2016 WOP conference (The Netherlands), and 2011 Easter Academy of Management conference (India). She was internationally known for her work on dynamic team diversity, team dynamics, and longitudinal research methods.