Group Processes and Performance in A Complex Business Simulation

Group positive affect is defined as homogeneous positive affect among group members that emerges when working together. Considering that previous research has shown a significant relationship between group positive affect and a wide variety of group outcomes (e.g., behaviors, wellbeing, and performance), it is crucial to boost our knowledge about this construct in the work context. The main purpose is to review empirical research, to synthesize the findings and to provide research agenda about group positive affect, in order to better understand this construct. Through the PsycNET and Proquest Central databases, an integrative review was conducted to identify articles about group positive affect published between January 1990 and March 2019. A total of 44 articles were included and analyzed. Finding suggests that scholars have been more interested in understanding the outcomes of group positive affect and how to improve the productivity of groups than in knowing what the antecedents are. A summary conclusion is that group positive affect is related to leadership, job demands, job resources, diversity/similarity, group processes, and contextual factors, all of which influence the development of several outcomes and different types of wellbeing at the individual and group levels. However, with specific combinations of other conditions (e.g., group trust, negative affect, and interaction), high levels of group positive affect could cause harmful results. Conclusions shed light on group positive affect research and practice and might help Human Resources professionals to initiate empirically-based strategies related to recruitment, group design and leadership training.

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Inclusive Language Use in Multicultural Business Organizations: The Effect on Creativity and Performance

International Journal of Business Communication ◽

10.1177/2329488415572779 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 54 (3) ◽

pp. 306-324 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Jakob Lauring ◽

Anders Klitmøller

Keyword(s):

Language Use ◽

Group Processes ◽

Language Diversity ◽

Theoretical Idea ◽

General Hypothesis ◽

Shared Identity ◽

Inclusive Language ◽

Multicultural Organizations ◽

Language Communication ◽

And Performance

Few studies have dealt with inclusive language use in multicultural organizations. This is unfortunate because it has been hypothesized that such organizations will be more creative and will perform better than mono-cultural organizations if communication issues are dealt with correctly by managers. In this study, we test the general hypothesis that inclusive language use by managers and employees in formal and informal situations will increase the creativity and performance in multicultural organizations. By use of responses from 676 individuals employed in privately owned multicultural companies, we found that management common language communication was strongly associated with performance but not with creativity. Openness to language diversity among employees, however, had strong relations with both creativity and performance. This indicates that management communication may provide information and a shared identity that can increase the performance of an organization. Yet in order to increase creativity, there is a need to also facilitate inclusive group processes. The findings provide new insights into the theoretical idea that diversity leads to creativity and performance if communication is managed correctly.

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Serious Games for Serious Business

Handbook of Research on Serious Games as Educational, Business and Research Tools ◽

10.4018/978-1-4666-0149-9.ch030 ◽

2012 ◽

pp. 598-614 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Paulo Correia ◽

Paulo Carrasco

Keyword(s):

Video Games ◽

Serious Games ◽

Management Education ◽

Historical Review ◽

Business Simulation ◽

Management Skills ◽

Simulation Games ◽

Management Processes ◽

Potential Benefits ◽

And Performance

The focus of this chapter is serious games and their applications in management education, training, and skills development. It is argued that the use of serious games can improve management processes in organizations, and it is shown that there are advantages to using video games for this purpose (games-based learning) in relation to traditional methods. A brief historical review of the use of business simulation games is conducted. It is shown that some types of entertainment video games can also help to develop management skills. Potential benefits of using serious games within businesses are mentioned as well as some problems that may arise in its implementation and ways to overcome them. Finally, some examples of the use of serious games with the aim of improving managers’ skills and performance are presented.

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Diversity as Knowledge Exchange: The Roles of Information Processing, Expertise, and Status

10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199736355.013.0009 ◽

2013 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Katherine W. Phillips ◽

Michelle Duguid ◽

Melissa Thomas-Hunt ◽

Jayaram Uparna

Keyword(s):

Information Processing ◽

Expert Knowledge ◽

Knowledge Exchange ◽

Group Processes ◽

Relevant Information ◽

Homogeneous Groups ◽

New Information ◽

Information Processing Perspective ◽

And Performance ◽

Status Differences

As part of an effort to understand diversity’s influence on group processes and performance, some researchers have explored diversity from an information processing perspective. This perspective suggests that because individuals in heterogeneous groups have a broader range of knowledge, skills, and abilities than homogeneous groups, they will also have greater access to a variety of task-relevant information and expertise, which can enhance group decision making. This chapter summarizes the findings of empirical research from this perspective and extends the tenets of this perspective, acknowledging the limitations of the original formulation. Included in the review is research on minority and majority influence processes and the integration of expert knowledge in groups. Finally, the chapter integrates this new information processing view with work that focuses on the effect of status differences on the processing of information in diverse environments.

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Is Avoiding the Appearance of Incompetence the Key to Success? An Examination of Team Goal Orientation and Performance in a Simulation Environment

Journal of Educational Computing Research ◽

10.1177/0735633120940955 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 58 (8) ◽

pp. 1562-1585

Author(s):

Phillip E. Davis ◽

Corey J. Fox ◽

Jason D. DeBode ◽

Lori T. Peterson

Keyword(s):

Goal Orientation ◽

Goal Orientations ◽

Business Environment ◽

Team Development ◽

Learning Tools ◽

Simulation Environment ◽

Business Simulation ◽

Performance Metric ◽

Student Teams ◽

And Performance

A key challenge for educators in business is to incorporate learning tools that mimic the uncertainty and complexity of the real business environment. However, recent advancements in technology have offered new tools that address this challenge. One such increasingly popular tool has been computer simulations. While the use of simulations has grown in business education, the research on simulations is quite nascent. This is especially true when it comes to understanding which factors lead students to perform better or worse in a business simulation environment. By integrating goal the orientation and generative learning literature, this study seeks to address this shortcoming in the existing literature. More specifically, we explore how student teams’ goal orientation affects their team’s performance in a simulation context. Results suggest Learn and Avoid Goal orientations are positively related to an objective performance metric (i.e., sales growth), while the Avoid Goal orientation is positively related to a subjective performance metric of team effectiveness. On the other hand, the Prove Goal orientation was negatively related to both metrics. The paper concludes with a discussion of the contributions and implications for both team development and pedagogical approaches to team support.

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Social Identity, Group Processes, and Performance in Synchronous Computer-Mediated Communication.

Group Dynamics Theory Research and Practice ◽

10.1037/1089-2699.8.1.27 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 27-39 ◽

Cited By ~ 45

Author(s):

Nicolas Michinov ◽

Estelle Michinov ◽

Marie-Christine Toczek-Capelle

Keyword(s):

Social Identity ◽

Computer Mediated Communication ◽

Group Processes ◽

Mediated Communication ◽

Identity Group ◽

Computer Mediated ◽

And Performance

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Personality Influences on Group Processes

The Oxford Handbook of Personality and Social Psychology ◽

10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190224837.013.22 ◽

2018 ◽

pp. 592-620

Author(s):

Craig D. Parks

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Group Decision Making ◽

Group Performance ◽

Group Decision ◽

Historical Analysis ◽

Group Processes ◽

History Of ◽

And Performance ◽

Modern Work

This chapter addresses the role of personality traits in group decision-making and performance processes. It begins with a review of the history of interaction between group and personality researchers to show that, at one time, the domains went hand in hand. Methodological concerns in the 1950s, however, led group researchers to move away from personality, resulting in a piecemeal approach to personality influences in groups. Following this historical analysis, modern work in conflict, group performance, group decision-making, and group maintenance is reviewed, with a key theme being that although there are few systematic studies of traits in groups, there is quite a bit of isolated work being done. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the barriers to increased collaboration between the two camps, why such collaboration is important for both, and some ideas about what a Person × Situation interaction within a group might reflect.

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