Subgroup formation and identification in multinational teams: do birds of a feather flock together?

Abstract

Multinational teams (MNTs) consist of members from different national backgrounds who work interdependently to achieve a shared objective (Earley & Gibson, 2002). Much of the previous research on MNTs has focused on whether members’ national background diversity has an impact on MNT effectiveness (Connaughton & Shuffler, 2007; Stahl, Mäkelä, Zander, & Maznevski, 2010a; Stahl, Maznevski, Voigt, & Jonsen, 2010b). The purpose of the present study was to examine the perception of diversity by team members, with regard to their definition of subgroups and identification with the in-groups, out-groups, and the entire team.