What effect does member diversity have on a team?

Student answers may vary. The extent to which members vary with regard to personality, demographic attributes (e.g., age, gender, ethnic identity, education), and functional specialization has implications for group processes and outcomes. Groups with diverse membership are likely to be less cohesive, because people tend to be less accepting of others who have different beliefs, values, and traditions. Diversity can also impede communication when members use different language, jargon, measures, or criteria. On the positive side, having members with different perspectives, experiences, and knowledge can result in more creative solutions to problems. The importance of diversity for group performance varies somewhat for different types of groups and different situations. It is easier to convert diversity into cooperative problem solving when members are highly interdependent for attainment of important shared objectives, but making it happen is a major leadership challenge. A leader with authority to select members can try to select members who are diverse in terms of their background and relevant knowledge.