Mon Sep 17 2012 - B&T12465_ERIM_Omslag_Hoever_17sept12.pdf DIVERSITY AND CREATIVITY 267 INGA JASMIN HOEVER IN SEARCH OF SYNERGY In this dissertation, I investigate the conditions and processes that enable teams to optimally use their informational resources to develop creative solutions. Whereas teams, especially those with diverse task-relevant information and perspectives, are considered a Diversity and Creativity viable means to the end of higher creativity, systematic research on the factors that INGA JASMIN HOEVER - Diversity and Creativity facilitate team creativity and the processes conducive to it remains sparse to date. In Search of Synergy The three empirical studies included in this dissertation extend this understanding of how teams achieve creative outcomes. The findings highlight the role of other-focused behaviors including perspective taking and feedback between teammates in bringing out diversity’s potential for team creativity. Furthermore, in-depth behavioral observation of the teams’ creative process yields converging evidence for the importance of information elaboration as a precursor of higher creativity in diverse teams but not for alternative processes frequently suggested to transmit the diversity’s benefits instead. Finally, the reported research points to the differential impact of formal external interventions in shaping team processes and creativity in diverse and homogeneous teams. Together, these findings have important implications for future research on team crea - tivity, diversity, and team processes. They call into question the straightforward nature of the frequently proposed link between diversity and creativity and identify important moderators of this effect. Moreover, the findings indicate that the relationships between Design & layout: B&T Ontwerp en advies (www.b-en-t.nl) Print: Haveka (www.haveka.nl) creativity and its team-level antecedents are not fully homologous to the established individual-level relationships. Finally, the results underscore the need to systematically investigate the differential impact of managerial interventions such as feedback on diverse and homogeneous teams. The Erasmus Research Institute of Management (ERIM) is the Research School (Onder - zoek school) in the field of management of the Erasmus University Rotterdam. The founding participants of ERIM are the Rotterdam School of Management (RSM), and the Erasmus School of Econo mics (ESE). ERIM was founded in 1999 and is officially accre dited by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW). The research under taken by ERIM is focused on the management of the firm in its environment, its intra- and interfirm relations, and its busi ness processes in their interdependent connections. The objective of ERIM is to carry out first rate research in manage ment, and to offer an ad vanced doctoral pro gramme in Research in Management. Within ERIM, over three hundred senior researchers and PhD candidates are active in the different research pro - grammes. From a variety of acade mic backgrounds and expertises, the ERIM commu nity is united in striving for excellence and working at the fore front of creating new business knowledge. Erasmus Research Institute of Management - ERIM PhD Series Research in Management Erasmus Research Institute of Management - Tel. +31 10 408 11 82 Rotterdam School of Management (RSM) Fax +31 10 408 96 40 ERIM Erasmus School of Economics (ESE) E-mail [email protected] Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) Internet www.erim.eur.nl P.O. Box 1738, 3000 DR Rotterdam, The Netherlands Diversity and Creativity: In search of synergy Diversity and Creativity: In search of synergy Diversiteit en creativiteit: Op zoek naar synergie Thesis to obain the degree of Doctor from the Erasmus University Rotterdam by command of the rector magnificus Prof.dr. H.G. Schmidt and in accordance with the decision of the Doctorate Board The public defense shall be held on Friday, 12 October 2012 at 11:30 hrs by Inga Jasmin Hoever born in Hürth, Germany. Doctoral Committee Promoter: Prof.dr. D. van Knippenberg Other members: Prof.dr. H.G. Barkema Prof. S.R. Giessner Prof.dr. J. Zhou Copromoter: Prof. W.P. van Ginkel Erasmus Research Institute of Management – ERIM The joint research institute of the Rotterdam School of Management (RSM) and the Erasmus School of Economics (ESE) at the Erasmus University Rotterdam Internet: http://www.erim.eur.nl ERIM Electronic Series Portal: http://hdl.handle.net/1765/1 ERIM PhD Series in Research in Management, 267 ERIM reference number: EPS-2012-267-ORG © 2012, Inga J. Hoever Design: B&T Ontwerp en advies www.b-en-t.nl This publication (cover and interior) is printed by haveka.nl on recycled paper, Revive®. The ink used is produced from renewable resources and alcohol free fountain solution. Certifications for the paper and the printing production process: Recycle, EU Flower, FSC, ISO14001. More info: http://www.haveka.nl/greening All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author. Acknowledgements Throughout the last four years, I was fortunate to be surrounded by a large group of mentors, colleagues, friends, and family members whose readiness to provide advice, help, and distraction at every stop along the way has been remarkable. First, I would like to thank my supervisor, Daan van Knippenberg. Daan, these four years would have been much less fun, instructive, and productive without your enthusiasm, your keen insights, and the optimism that I can make it work. I am very grateful to my co- supervisor Wendy van Ginkel. Wendy, thank you for your invaluable advice on how to bridge the theory and practice of team research and on all the bigger and smaller questions I ran into. Thank you, Harry Barkema, for providing me with an alternative perspective and with advice on how to navigate the murky waters of publishing in management journals. Special thanks go to Jing Zhou. Jing, you made my time at Rice a wonderful experience by devoting so much of your thoughts and time to our projects and I am extremely grateful for your advice on all aspects of life in academia. It is an honor to have Eric Kearney, Pursey Heugens, and Steffen Giessner as members of my committee. Thank you, Eric, for your helpful input and challenging questions at strategic points of the project. Thank you, Pursey, for being a fantastic teacher and showing me that qualitative research is alive and well in management research. Steffen, it is a pleasure to work with you and I am very grateful for your tips on where to catch the best food, good music, and German soccer matches in town. Working and living in Rotterdam was very rewarding thanks to a number of great colleagues and friends. Thank you, Bep, Dicea, Babs, and Petra, for being a friendly face in the office and for your administrative support. Many thanks to all the wonderful people with whom I enjoyed lunches, chats, coffees, and drinks: Anne, Bart, Bernardo, Burçu, Colin, Daan S., Dirk, Ed, Gabi, Gabriele, Ivana, Jane, Janine, Joey, Jorien, Julija, Kate, Maartje, Manuel, Mark B., Mark G., Maya, Merlijn, Niels, Ona, Pierre, Pushpika, Rouven, Saskia, Shiko, Stephan, Victoria, Will, Yingjie and many others. Thank you, Suzanne, for your friendship and for making me feel so welcome by showing me the Netherlands and teaching me Dutch. Xanthi, thank you for being a good friend, and a source of good advice and good times. Thank you, Eliza, for the long talks and the healthy doses of sarcasm to tackle the less fun parts of the journey. Thank you Pooyan, for always having an open door, time to talk and listen, and for promoting our independence from the cafeteria. On my travels, I was lucky to encounter the kindness of strangers who became friends. Thank you Namrata, Vivek, Alberto, and Mac, for making my time in Houston so memorable. I am very grateful for your hospitality and kindness. Sarah, thank you for showing me the best sides of London. I am looking forward to coming back to seeing all of you and I hope I can repay some of your hospitality one day. Special thanks go to my family. Thank you, Marie and Peter, for making coming back home so wonderful, for your support, and for your readiness to listen. Thank you, Anne, for becoming a friend over these years. I very much enjoy the good times we have together and am very grateful to be able to count on your help and perspective when things get rocky. And thank you, Lin, Michael, David, Jen, and Bella, for your hospitality and for welcoming me into your family. And of course Nathan. I cannot thank you enough for your love, support, and companionship. You show me every day that life is great and I look forward to experiencing it with you for many years to come! Contents Chapter 1: Introduction ................................................................................................ 12 Research Topic ............................................................................................................. 1 Lessons from Prior Research ......................................................................................... 2 Research on Group Brainstorming and Idea Generation ............................................ 3 Research on Individual-Level Workplace Creativity ................................................. 4 Dissertation Overview ..................................................................................................