Support was found for the positive impact of task-related diversity on team performance although bio-demographic diversity was not significantly related to team performance. Similarly, no discernible effect of team diversity was found on social integration.
The investigation employed a meta-analytic technique to examine and integrate peer reviewed articles on the topic of team diversity published between 1985 and 2006. This time frame was selected because the area of team diversity grew into a central focus of the more general ongoing team research during this period. Articles for this review were identified through both computerized and manual searches of relevant databases and individual journals.
The searches employed team (group) work, team (group) composition, team (group) diversity, team (group) heterogeneity, member characteristics, and team (group) performance, as the major keywords to narrow the vast amount of research done on teamwork.
In sum, a total of 78 correlations from 35 peer-reviewed articles were included in this study. A coding form, as an information-gathering instrument, was developed for identifying pertinent information from studies. To assess the accuracy and reliability of coding, a second rater, who has a doctorate degree and considerable expertise in management coded a random sample of 20 studies included in the analysis. Discrepancies of the ratings were