The Research Team Task Conflict On Team Task Performance Mechanism

In an attempt to enhance high-tech innovation teams' viability and performance, a special attention should be placed on the important organizational issue that how to ensure teams' internal effective information relevant interaction.As a critical facet of the above issue,intra-team task-related conflict is recognized as significant for team information-processing and effectiveness,and its impact mechanisms is in need of deep exploration.Viewing teams as information processors and expanding on a cognitive information-processing perspective on innovation teams' interaction processes,the present study explores the effect mechanism of task conflict on task performance.Selectively reviewing most relevant research and theory and considering innovation teams' characteristics as well,team task conflict three-dimensional construct is identified and its effect mechanism model is constructed in this paper.The current research attempts are realized through several parts as follows:(1) Team task conflict three-dimensional construct structure is specified and its varied characteristic patterns in different task context are identifiedThe depth-interview with application of content analysis technique is conducted to explore the construct of team task conflict,which is regarded as the critical starting point of the present research framework.The result indicates that as task conflict is composed of "content-assignment-interface" three facets as a multi-dimensional construct.Developing extant "content-process" structure,process conflict is decomposed into two sub-dimensions,assignment and interface.That is,in the course of task-performing,process-related conflict within teams manifests on two facets of issues about assignment and interface respectively.Based on this multi-dimensional structure of task conflict,different combination forms of conflict elements are described under diverse task work settings.By looking at three different points in time including the beginning,mid,and end phases of task execution,this research indicates task-performing teams experience moderately high levels of process conflict over assignment issues at the early planning stages of task work,while relatively low levels of process conflict over interface issues occur at the mid task stages.Concerning task type,teams supplying technical services experience more task content conflict than product development teams do. (2) The cognitive(transactive memory) and behavioral(task reflexivity) mediation mechanisms of team task conflict on task performance are identified, and the phrase characteristics of this effect mechanism of task conflict—task performance are recognizedBased on integrating extant team information-processing perspective,a team learning process model that explains the effect mechanisms of task conflict on multi-criteria task performance is developed in current study.Specifically,the hypotheses that cognitive mediation of transactive memory(TM) and behavioral mediation of task reflexivity(RE) transmit the impact of task conflict on task-domain outcomes are examined.Empirical analyses show that distinct dimensions of task conflict affect TM and RE that in turn result in team performance,team innovation and team learning. Furthermore,the proposition that the strength of team-level reflection processes is related to the development of transactive memory within teams is supported.On the basis of task conflict meditational effect model,structural equation modeling also reveals that the impact patterns of task conflict on task-relevant outcomes have varied depending on the team project stage.The functions of different types of task conflict on TM,RE and multi facets of task performance manifests salient stage characteristics.(3) The moderation effect of team context interaction(process orientation and emotional conflict) in the link between task conflict and information interaction(TM and RE) are validatedFocusing the linkage between task conflict and team interaction on information processing,the influences of critical team interaction's contextual variables are examined.Specifically,taking into team-level intellectual evaluation pattern and emotional expression pattern accounts,this article suggests that task conflict interacts with team-level process orientation(PO) and emotional conflict(EC) to predict transactive memory and task reflexivity respectively.Hierarchical regressions are conducted to test the moderating roles of PO and EC.The results show that acting as an ameliorator of the main effect relationship,process orientation weakens the negative effects of assignment and interface conflict on TM.Besides,contrasting to the negative relationship between interface conflict and RE in low process-orientated teams,team process conflict on interface issues tends to provoke team collective task reflection under the circumstance advocating process attention.The moderating effect of emotional conflict on the link between task conflict and information interaction (TM and RE) manifests exacerbating function to cause a negative impact.Emotional conflict increases negative effects of interface conflict on TM,and decrease positive effects of content conflict on RE.Concerning the interface conflict's impact on RE, this relationship appears negative in high emotional conflict context whereas interface conflict occurring in low emotional conflict context tends to facilitate team's task-relevant reflection.In sum,proposition and verification of multi-dimensional task conflict construct lays a foundation for further analysis about its characteristic patterns under different task situation,and also makes it possible to explore its impact mechanism.Multiple criteria focusing on task performance are considered in current paper for the purpose of confirming the detailed conflict—outcome relationship.On inspecting the task conflict patterns' differences varying with diverse task basic situational conditions,the above research attempt brings more practical consideration into current team conflict study.While aiming at uncovering the latent influence mechanism of conflict on performance,the "task conflict—information interaction—task performance" effect model is constructed as the main part of the research framework.Founded on above influence analyses,the study continues with the contingency perspective of conflict by considering the role of temporal phases of team project life in the impact of task conflict on team information-processing interaction and task-relevant performance. Focusing on the linkage between task conflict and information interaction in teamwork context,the critical moderator roles of process orientation and emotional conflict on above influence relationships are recognized.Lastly,the paper discusses the above research findings,theoretical and managerial implications of the study,and also points out research limitations as well as directions for future research.