Staples & Zhao: How the Impact of Cultural Differences Influenced Team Effectiveness

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In a study by Staples & Zhao (2006), the researchers sought to understand how the impact of cultural differences influenced team effectiveness in virtual teams compared to the conventional teams. The teams in the experimental study were divided based on cultural differences, individualism or collectivism as well as languages, nationality and the country of birth. The study results showed that the heterogeneous team members reported less satisfaction with the tasks compared to the homogenous teams, but this did not affect the performance levels. However the heterogeneous virtual teams performed better compared to the heterogeneous face to face teams. The authors proposed that this was likely because the collaborative technologies have reductive capabilities necessary during the early stages of forming teams.
The author assumed that people from diverse countries have different perceptions of diversity. This to some extent was true, it was less clear whether the participants had mainly stayed in urban areas and hence more likely to have interacted with people from diverse culture. There was also an assumption that virtual teams made it easier for the participants to communicate since each had a chance to contribute. However, this is not clear from the responses since some of the participants may have preferred conventional communication. According to Lepsinger & Derosa (2011) the virtual team members need to understand goals, and have clear defined team roles for them to work effectively, while empowering them to make decisions.
Staples & Zhao (2006) hypothesized that the reductive capabilities of technology reduced the likely negative impact of virtual members. The study mainly concentrated on the early stages of team work, where many of the members did not each other. There is a need to understand how trust affects the viability of the virtual teams. The more that team members get to know each the more they are...