Manajemen | Fakultas Ekonomi Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji joeb.83.5.265-269

Journal of Education for Business

ISSN: 0883-2323 (Print) 1940-3356 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vjeb20

Team Climate and Productivity for Similar Majors
Versus Mixed Majors
Janet K. Winter , Karen K. Waner & Joan C. Neal-Mansfield
To cite this article: Janet K. Winter , Karen K. Waner & Joan C. Neal-Mansfield (2008) Team
Climate and Productivity for Similar Majors Versus Mixed Majors, Journal of Education for
Business, 83:5, 265-269, DOI: 10.3200/JOEB.83.5.265-269
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.3200/JOEB.83.5.265-269

Published online: 07 Aug 2010.

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Team฀Climate฀and฀Productivity฀฀
for฀Similar฀Majors฀Versus฀Mixed฀Majors
JANET฀K.฀WINTER
KAREN฀K.฀WANER฀
JOAN฀C.฀NEAL-MANSFIELD
UNIVERSITY฀OF฀CENTRAL฀MISSOURI฀
WARRENSBURG,฀MISSOURI

ABSTRACT. Teamwork฀and฀interpersonal฀communication฀are฀indispensable฀
skills฀for฀business฀workers,฀and฀most฀companies฀are฀promoting฀diversity฀in฀teams฀to฀
gain฀a฀competitive฀edge.฀Although฀findings฀

suggest฀that฀diversity฀may฀not฀be฀as฀valuable฀as฀it฀seems฀for฀most฀teams,฀business฀
workers฀need฀to฀manage฀diversity฀successfully.฀Therefore,฀the฀present฀authors฀tried฀to฀
determine฀whether฀teams฀of฀business฀students฀with฀similar฀majors฀held฀perceptions฀
about฀issues฀including฀conflict,฀leadership,฀
and฀friendship฀that฀differed฀from฀those฀
of฀mixed฀majors.฀Analyses฀of฀variance฀
indicated฀that฀teams฀with฀similar฀majors฀
expressed฀their฀ideas฀more฀freely฀and฀developed฀friendships฀more฀easily฀than฀did฀teams฀
of฀mixed฀majors.
Keywords:฀friendships,฀mixed฀majors,฀similar฀majors,฀teams
฀
Copyright฀©฀2008฀Heldref฀Publications

M

uch฀ as฀ in฀ the฀ inevitable฀ fall฀ of฀ a฀
chain฀ of฀ dominoes,฀ technology฀
has฀ escalated฀ global฀ marketing,฀ global฀
marketing฀ has฀ intensified฀ competition,฀
competition฀ has฀ intensified฀ the฀ demand฀

for฀creativity,฀and฀creativity฀has฀intensified฀the฀need฀for฀diversity฀and฀teamwork฀
in฀ organizations.฀ Thus,฀ this฀ need฀ has฀
resulted฀ in฀ an฀ attempt฀ by฀ tertiary฀ institutions฀ to฀ teach฀ team฀ skills฀ and฀ to฀ use฀
teamwork฀and฀team฀learning฀as฀a฀teaching฀method.฀One฀of฀the฀biggest฀problems฀
is฀communication฀within฀the฀team.฀
REVIEW฀OF฀THE฀LITERATURE
In฀ a฀ textbook฀ devoted฀ to฀ teaching฀
teamwork฀ and฀ communication฀ in฀ areas฀
of฀ aviation,฀ the฀ authors฀ quoted฀ George฀
Bernard฀ Shaw’s฀ observation฀ that฀ “The฀
greatest฀problem฀in฀communication฀is฀the฀
illusion฀ that฀ it฀ has฀ been฀ accomplished”฀
(Kanki฀ &฀ Smith,฀ 2001,฀ p.฀ 95).฀ If฀ the฀
basics฀ are฀ inherently฀ problematic,฀ the฀
task฀of฀teaching฀team฀skills฀is฀monumental,฀ as฀ evidenced฀ by฀ current฀ thinking฀ in฀
the฀ area.฀ However,฀ research฀ has฀ shown฀
that฀ interpersonal฀ skills฀ are฀ vital฀ to฀ success฀ in฀ the฀ workplace฀ (Caldwell,฀ 2006;฀
Camp,฀2007;฀Messmer,฀2007;฀Ruderman฀
&฀Ohlott,฀2006;฀“Tips฀for฀taking,”฀2006).
Importance฀of฀Communication฀

Skills
The฀ Bureau฀ of฀ Vocational฀ Guidance฀
at฀Harvard฀reported฀that฀about฀two฀thirds฀

฀

of฀ those฀ who฀ lose฀ their฀ jobs฀ experience฀
this฀failure฀because฀of฀poor฀people฀skills฀
(Arrien,฀ 2001),฀ and฀ the฀ Center฀ for฀ Creative฀ Leadership฀ in฀ Greensboro,฀ NC,฀
found฀ that฀ most฀ terminated฀ executives฀
exhibited฀ poor฀ communication฀ skills฀
(Arrien).฀ A฀ report฀ from฀ the฀ Carnegie฀
Institute฀ of฀ Technology’s฀ analysis฀ of฀
10,000฀ personnel฀ records฀ reveals฀ that฀
only฀ 15%฀ of฀ job฀ success฀ is฀ a฀ result฀ of฀
technical฀ proficiency,฀ whereas฀ the฀
remaining฀ 85%฀ is฀ attributable฀ to฀ people฀
skills฀ (Arrien).฀ This฀ interpersonal฀ communication฀occurs฀often฀in฀team฀or฀meeting฀situations,฀especially฀for฀managers.฀
Characteristics฀of฀Effective฀
Teams

According฀ to฀ Kinlaw฀ (1991),฀ effective฀ teams฀ can฀ be฀ identified฀ by฀ four฀
characteristics—they฀ produce฀ results,฀
develop฀ informal฀ processes,฀ develop฀
special฀ feelings,฀ and฀ take฀ leadership.฀
In฀other฀words,฀a฀team฀becomes฀a฀functional฀ body฀ whose฀ members฀ complement฀ each฀ other฀ to฀ achieve฀ their฀ common฀ end.฀ Brown฀ (1996)฀ said฀ that฀ the฀
first฀requirement฀for฀team฀success฀is฀that฀
it฀must฀actually฀be฀needed;฀the฀second฀is฀
that฀the฀teamwork฀skills฀must฀be฀developed฀ because฀ these฀ skills฀ do฀ not฀ come฀
naturally฀to฀most฀people.
In฀their฀analysis฀of฀15,000฀team฀members,฀LaFasto฀and฀Larson฀(2001)฀identified฀four฀personal฀qualities฀or฀teamwork฀
May/June฀2008฀

265

Downloaded by [Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji] at 23:12 11 January 2016

factors฀that฀must฀be฀present฀for฀a฀team฀to฀
be฀successful:฀openness,฀supportiveness,฀
action฀orientation,฀and฀a฀positive฀personal฀
style.฀LaFasto฀and฀Larson’s฀research฀suggests฀that฀the฀approach฀and฀personality฀of฀

the฀team฀member฀have฀a฀greater฀bearing฀
on฀ the฀ person’s฀ effectiveness฀ within฀ the฀
team฀than฀do฀differences฀in฀background.
Losoncy฀ (1997)฀ outlined฀ seven฀
requirements฀ for฀ a฀ successful฀ team:฀
synergy,฀cooperation,฀determined฀focus,฀
mutual฀ respect,฀ reality฀ base,฀ optimism,฀
and฀ progress.฀ Although฀ differences฀ in฀
backgrounds,฀ approaches,฀ and฀ beliefs฀
can฀ get฀ in฀ the฀ way,฀ Losoncy’s฀ findings฀
suggested฀that฀diversity฀is฀not฀a฀requirement฀ or฀ an฀ obstacle,฀ particularly฀ for฀
a฀ normal฀ work฀ group.฀ However,฀ many฀
firms฀ today฀ use฀ teams฀ to฀ promote฀ creativity฀and฀innovation฀to฀meet฀and฀beat฀
the฀competition.฀Theoretically,฀the฀more฀
diverse฀a฀team฀is,฀the฀more฀creative฀and฀
productive฀it฀can฀be.฀However,฀research฀
on฀the฀impact฀of฀diversity฀on฀team฀effectiveness฀has฀been฀inconclusive.฀
Benefits฀and฀Drawbacks฀of฀
Diverse฀Multicultural฀Teams
One฀ of฀ the฀ biggest฀ sources฀ of฀ difference฀ within฀ a฀ team฀ can฀ be฀ culture.฀

According฀ to฀ Adler฀ (1991),฀ “Multicultural฀ groups฀ have฀ more฀ potential฀ for฀
higher฀ productivity฀ than฀ do฀ homogeneous฀groups,฀but฀they฀also฀bear฀the฀risk฀
of฀greater฀losses฀due฀to฀faulty฀process”฀
(p.฀ 128).฀Adler฀ described฀ the฀ causes฀ of฀
dysfunction฀in฀a฀multicultural฀group:
Diversity฀ makes฀ group฀ functioning฀ more฀
difficult฀ because฀ it฀ becomes฀ more฀ difficult฀ to฀ see฀ situations฀ in฀ similar฀ ways,฀
understand฀ them฀ in฀ similar฀ ways,฀ and฀
act฀ on฀ them฀ in฀ similar฀ ways.฀ Diversity฀
makes฀reaching฀agreement฀more฀difficult.฀
Employees฀ from฀ the฀ same฀ culture฀ are฀
generally฀easier฀to฀manage;฀they฀are฀more฀
likely฀to฀communicate฀clearly฀and฀to฀trust฀
each฀other฀more฀readily.฀(pp.฀128–129)฀

Some฀ additional฀ problems฀ described฀
by฀Adler฀(1991)฀include฀attitudinal฀problems฀of฀dislike฀and฀mistrust,฀perceptual฀
problems฀ involving฀ stereotyping฀ and฀
undervaluation,฀ communication฀ problems฀ resulting฀ in฀ inaccuracy฀ and฀ inefficiency,฀ and฀ stress฀ leading฀ to฀ tension฀
and฀ decreased฀ effectiveness.฀ However,฀฀

Adler฀asserted฀that฀the฀advantages฀of฀a฀
culturally฀diverse฀group฀include฀limited฀
groupthink฀and฀more฀and฀better฀ideas.
266฀

Journal฀of฀Education฀for฀Business

“Multicultural฀teams฀have฀the฀potential฀ to฀ become฀ the฀ most฀ effective฀ and฀
productive฀ teams฀ in฀ an฀ organization.฀
Unfortunately,฀ they฀ frequently฀ become฀
the฀ least฀ effective”฀ (Adler,฀ 1991,฀ p.฀
134).฀Diversity,฀like฀any฀resource,฀must฀
be฀effectively฀used฀and฀managed฀to฀add฀
value฀to฀the฀team’s฀function.฀Unless฀it฀is฀
managed฀properly,฀diversity฀may฀actually฀derail฀the฀team฀if฀diverse฀members฀go฀
in฀different฀directions.฀Where฀creativity฀
is฀ needed,฀ diversity฀ can฀ jump-start฀ the฀
project,฀ especially฀ in฀ the฀ early฀ stages.฀
However,฀ for฀ more฀ routine฀ projects,฀
diversity฀ may฀ be฀ a฀ hindrance,฀ rather฀

than฀a฀help,฀to฀the฀team฀function.
Too฀much฀emphasis฀on฀diversity฀may฀be฀
a฀stumbling฀block฀for฀a฀team,฀as฀Gardenswartz฀and฀Rowe฀(1994)฀found.฀According฀ to฀ their฀ research,฀ the฀ four฀ layers฀ of฀
difference฀ are,฀ in฀ order฀ of฀ importance,฀
(a)฀ personality;฀ (b)฀ age,฀ gender,฀ physical฀ability,฀ethnicity,฀etc.;฀(c)฀appearance,฀
work฀experience,฀religion,฀personal฀habits,฀etc.;฀and฀(d)฀seniority,฀work฀location,฀
management฀status,฀field,฀etc.฀If,฀as฀their฀
research฀ suggests,฀ managing฀ differences฀
in฀ personality฀ is฀ more฀ important฀ than฀
dealing฀with฀differences฀in฀cultural฀backgrounds,฀ diversity฀ may฀ be฀ a฀ minor฀ element฀necessary฀only฀for฀special฀projects—฀
despite฀the฀current฀emphasis฀on฀it.
Watson,฀ Kumar,฀ and฀ Michaelsen’s฀
(1993)฀ research฀ on฀ cultural฀ diversity฀ in฀
teams฀ suggested฀ that฀ similar฀ groups฀ are฀
more฀ effective฀ in฀ the฀ early฀ stages฀ but฀
that฀ process฀ and฀ performance฀ levels฀ are฀
almost฀identical฀after฀about฀17฀weeks.฀In฀a฀
discussion฀of฀ways฀to฀effectively฀manage฀
diversity,฀Cox฀and฀Blake฀(1991)฀prefaced฀
their฀ discussion฀ with฀ the฀ bold฀ statement฀

that฀ “the฀ specific฀ link฀ between฀ managing฀diversity฀and฀organizational฀competitiveness฀ is฀ rarely฀ made฀ explicit,฀ and฀ no฀
article฀has฀reviewed฀actual฀research฀data฀
supporting฀such฀a฀link”฀(p.฀45).฀O’Reilly฀
(1997)฀supports฀this฀view.฀However,฀Hobman,฀Bordia,฀and฀Gallois฀(2003)฀reported฀
that฀both฀team฀success฀and฀team฀member฀
relationships฀ were฀ affected฀ when฀ diversity฀was฀not฀managed฀and฀team฀relationships฀were฀not฀encouraged.
The฀Present฀Study
According฀ to฀ the฀ aforementioned฀
research,฀diversity฀of฀backgrounds,฀attitudes,฀ and฀ values฀ is฀ not฀ an฀ important฀

component฀of฀team฀effectiveness.฀However,฀ managing฀ diversity฀ ineffectively฀
may฀have฀a฀negative฀effect.
Therefore,฀the฀purpose฀of฀the฀present฀
study฀ was฀ to฀ determine฀ if฀ significant฀
differences฀existed฀between฀the฀perceptions฀of฀students฀in฀teams฀with฀the฀same฀
business฀ majors฀ and฀ the฀ perceptions฀ of฀
students฀ in฀ diverse฀ teams฀ with฀ mixed฀
business฀ majors฀ (including฀ accounting,฀
computer฀information฀systems,฀finance,฀
marketing,฀and฀management).฀We฀asked฀

students฀ to฀ address฀ several฀ items฀ about฀
how฀their฀teams฀operated฀(see฀questions฀
in฀Table฀1)฀and฀how฀they฀would฀describe฀
their฀teams฀(see฀descriptors฀in฀Table฀2).
METHOD
Participants
We฀conducted฀this฀study฀at฀a฀Midwestern,฀regional,฀comprehensive฀university฀
whose฀ business฀ college฀ was฀ accredited฀
by฀the฀Association฀to฀Advance฀Collegiate฀
Schools฀of฀Business฀International.฀During฀ the฀ first฀ week฀ of฀ the฀ semester,฀ 188฀
full-time฀students฀(89฀men,฀81฀women,฀
18฀ unspecified)฀ who฀ were฀ enrolled฀ in฀
business฀ communication฀ courses฀ were฀
randomly฀ assigned฀ to฀ teams฀ with฀ the฀
same฀ business฀ majors฀ or฀ to฀ teams฀ with฀
mixed฀ majors.฀ The฀ sample฀ was฀ almost฀
equally฀divided฀on฀the฀dimension฀of฀sex,฀
and฀ 78%฀ of฀ the฀ students฀ were฀ younger฀ than฀ 23฀ years.฀ The฀ percentages฀ of฀
students฀ reporting฀ each฀ major฀ were฀ as฀
follows:฀ 14%฀ accounting,฀ 3%฀ business฀
education,฀ 13%฀ computer฀ information฀
systems,฀13%฀finance,฀6%฀graphic฀arts,฀
24%฀management,฀13%฀marketing,฀and฀
14%฀other.฀We฀tried฀to฀balance฀teams฀in฀
terms฀ of฀ men฀ and฀ women,฀ and฀ the฀ few฀
international฀ students฀ were฀ randomly฀
assigned฀ to฀ teams.฀ Because฀ we฀ used฀
a฀ convenience฀ sample,฀ researchers฀ can฀
generalize฀the฀findings฀and฀conclusions฀
only฀to฀the฀students฀in฀this฀study.฀
Procedure
At฀the฀beginning฀of฀the฀semester,฀we฀
instructed฀ students฀ on฀ team฀ development,฀ the฀ phases฀ of฀ team฀ development฀
(forming,฀ storming,฀ norming,฀ and฀ performing),฀steps฀in฀dealing฀with฀conflict,฀
and฀the฀decision฀process฀(Guffey,฀2003).฀
Teams฀worked฀on฀projects฀such฀as฀writing฀ letters฀ and฀ memos฀ and฀ responding฀

TABLE฀1.฀Means,฀Standard฀Deviations,฀F฀values,฀and฀Probabilities฀of฀Responses฀of฀Similar-Majors฀and฀Mixed-Majors฀฀
Student฀Teams
฀

Similar฀majors฀

Question฀

Downloaded by [Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji] at 23:12 11 January 2016

Did฀you฀feel฀as฀if฀you฀were฀a฀full฀member฀of฀your฀group?฀
Did฀you฀feel฀comfortable฀to฀express฀your฀ideas?฀
How฀much฀personality฀conflict฀did฀your฀team฀have?฀
How฀much฀idea฀conflict฀did฀your฀team฀experience?฀
How฀much฀procedural฀conflict฀did฀your฀team฀experience?฀
How฀much฀conflict฀did฀your฀team฀experience฀as฀a฀result฀of฀
฀฀฀differences฀in฀areas฀such฀as฀cultural,฀gender,฀and/or฀age?฀
How฀often฀does฀one฀person฀dominate฀the฀team?฀
When฀you฀are฀the฀leader,฀how฀well฀does฀your฀team฀let฀you฀
฀฀฀lead?฀
Even฀if฀you฀have฀an฀assigned฀leader,฀how฀often฀does฀your฀
฀฀฀team฀just฀jump฀in฀and฀get฀it฀done฀cooperatively?฀
How฀easy฀does฀your฀team฀find฀it฀to฀make฀decisions?฀
How฀effective฀did฀you฀feel฀your฀leader฀was?฀
How฀much฀friendship฀is฀there฀in฀your฀team฀(i.e.,฀do฀people฀
฀฀฀talk฀about฀anything฀besides฀school฀work)?฀
Have฀team฀members฀appeared฀to฀have฀developed฀new฀
฀฀฀friendships/relationships฀that฀go฀beyond฀the฀classroom?฀
Rate฀the฀cooperativeness฀of฀your฀group฀members.฀
Rate฀the฀competitiveness฀of฀your฀group฀members฀(my฀idea฀
฀฀฀is฀best).฀
How฀often฀is฀the฀person฀with฀the฀ideas฀the฀one฀who฀
฀฀฀assumes฀leadership?฀
How฀much฀did฀you฀develop฀your฀team฀skills?฀

Mixed฀majors

M฀

SD฀

฀n฀

M฀

SD฀

฀n฀

F฀

df฀

p

6.49฀
6.49฀
2.13฀
2.49฀
2.37฀

0.89฀
1.05฀
1.68฀
1.58฀
1.57฀

95฀
95฀
95฀
95฀
95฀

6.31฀
6.16฀
2.44฀
2.77฀
2.55฀

1.22฀
1.23฀
1.66฀
1.56฀
1.60฀

93฀
92฀
93฀
93฀
93฀

1.39฀
3.93฀
1.67฀
1.48฀
0.61฀

1,฀186฀
1,฀185฀
1,฀186฀
1,฀186฀
1,฀186฀

.2392
.0490
.1985
.2247
.4373

1.57฀
3.14฀

1.24฀
1.71฀

93฀
94฀

1.80฀
3.30฀

1.34฀
1.70฀

93฀
92฀

1.43฀
0.44฀

1,฀184฀
1,฀184฀

.2339
.5074

5.41฀

1.48฀

95฀

5.44฀

1.36฀

91฀

0.02฀

1,฀184฀

.8893

5.66฀
5.77฀
5.95฀

1.26฀
1.16฀
1.31฀

95฀
95฀
93฀

5.73฀
5.63฀
5.69฀

1.58฀
1.37฀
1.55฀

93฀
93฀
91฀

0.11฀
0.52฀
1.45฀

1,฀186฀
1,฀186฀
1,฀182฀

.7438
.4707
.2300

6.06฀

1.20฀

95฀

5.68฀

1.53฀

91฀

3.61฀

1,฀184฀

.0590

5.32฀
6.28฀

1.62฀
1.01฀

95฀
92฀

4.72฀
6.10฀

1.95฀
1.19฀

93฀
90฀

5.19฀
1.25฀

1,฀186฀
1,฀180฀

.0239
.2654

3.71฀

1.96฀

95฀

3.58฀

1.87฀

91฀

0.19฀฀

1,฀184฀

.6626

4.89฀
5.67฀

1.31฀
1.23฀

94฀
95฀

4.99฀
5.66฀

1.27฀
1.22฀

93฀
92฀

0.26฀฀
0.00฀

1,฀185฀
1,฀185฀

.6129
.9529

Note.฀Respondents฀answered฀on฀a฀Likert-type฀scale฀ranging฀from฀1฀(little)฀to฀7฀(much).฀

TABLE฀2.฀Responses฀of฀Students฀Who฀Were฀in฀Teams฀of฀Similar฀Majors฀and฀Mixed฀Majors
Totala

฀

Similar฀majors฀

Mixed฀majors฀

Statement฀that฀best฀describes฀your฀team฀

%฀

n฀

%฀

n฀

%฀

n

One฀or฀two฀do฀all฀the฀work—usually฀effectively.฀
One฀or฀two฀do฀all฀the฀work—not฀very฀effectively.฀
There฀seem฀to฀be฀two฀subgroups฀most฀days.฀
Everybody฀seems฀to฀share฀the฀work฀fairly฀evenly,฀and฀we
฀฀฀accomplish฀a฀great฀deal.฀
Everybody฀seems฀to฀share฀the฀work฀fairly฀evenly,฀but฀it฀
฀฀฀takes฀a฀while฀to฀get฀everyone฀to฀agree.฀
One฀person฀disagrees฀with฀everyone฀else฀much฀of฀the฀time.฀
Total฀

7.45฀
0.00฀
5.85฀

14฀
0฀
11฀

6.38฀
0.00฀
3.72฀

12฀
0฀
7฀

13.83฀
0.00฀
9.57฀

26
0
18

29.26฀

55฀

30.85฀

58฀

60.11฀

113

6.91฀
1.06฀
50.53฀

13฀
2฀
95฀

7.98฀
0.53฀
49.47฀

15฀
1฀
93฀

14.89฀
1.60฀
100.00฀

28
3
188

χ (4,฀N฀=฀188)฀=฀1.5775,฀p฀=฀.81.

a 2

to฀ readiness-assessment฀ tests฀ throughout฀the฀semester.
We฀ conducted฀ a฀ face-validity฀ check฀
on฀ the฀ Questionnaire฀ on฀Team฀ Climate฀
and฀ made฀ changes฀ to฀ clarify฀ the฀ items.฀
The฀ Questionnaire฀ on฀ Team฀ Climate฀
was฀ adapted฀ by฀ us฀ from฀ the฀ Student฀
Reaction฀Questionnaire฀that฀Neal฀(1994)฀
developed฀ and฀ analyzed.฀ Analysis฀ of฀
฀

the฀ questionnaire฀ resulted฀ in฀ a฀ coefficient฀Cronbach’s฀alpha฀reliability฀of฀.84,฀
which฀is฀above฀the฀.70฀acceptance฀level฀
recommended฀by฀Nunnally฀(1978).฀
At฀ the฀ end฀ of฀ the฀ semester,฀ students฀ responded฀ to฀ 18฀ statements฀ on฀
the฀Questionnaire฀on฀Team฀Climate.฀Of฀
those฀statements,฀17฀had฀7-point฀Likert-฀
type฀ scales฀ ranging฀ from฀ 1฀ (little)฀ to฀

7฀ (much).฀ We฀ conducted฀ an฀ analysis฀
of฀ variance฀ (ANOVA)฀ to฀ determine฀ if฀
significant฀ differences฀ existed฀ between฀
teams฀ of฀ similar฀ majors฀ and฀ teams฀ of฀
mixed฀majors฀on฀any฀of฀the฀statements.฀
Also,฀ we฀ ran฀ a฀ chi-square฀ test฀ on฀ one฀
statement฀ that฀ presented฀ six฀ options,฀
where฀team฀members฀chose฀one฀option฀
that฀best฀described฀their฀teams.
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RESULTS
The฀ values฀ in฀ Table฀ 1฀ show฀ that฀ the฀
ANOVA฀ revealed฀ significant฀ differences฀ between฀ teams฀ of฀ similar฀ majors฀
and฀teams฀of฀mixed฀majors฀in฀the฀team฀
members’฀levels฀of฀comfort฀in฀expressing฀their฀ideas฀and฀in฀developing฀friendships฀ that฀ go฀ beyond฀ the฀ classroom.฀
Teams฀ with฀ similar฀ majors฀ (M฀ =฀ 6.49,฀
SD฀=฀1.05)฀felt฀significantly฀more฀comfortable฀ in฀ expressing฀ their฀ ideas,฀ F(1,฀
185)฀ =฀ 3.93,฀ p฀ >฀ .049,฀ than฀ did฀ teams฀
with฀ mixed฀ majors฀ (M฀ =฀ 6.16,฀ SD฀ =฀
1.23).฀ Likewise,฀ teams฀ with฀ similar฀
majors฀(M฀=฀5.32,฀SD฀=฀1.62)฀appeared฀
to฀ develop฀ new฀ friendships฀ that฀ went฀
beyond฀ the฀ classroom฀ more฀ frequently,฀
F(1,฀ 186)฀ =฀ 5.19,฀ p฀ >฀ .023,฀ than฀ did฀
teams฀of฀mixed฀majors฀(M฀=฀4.72,฀SD฀=฀
1.95).฀ This฀ may฀ be฀ because฀ they฀ had฀
common฀classes฀and฀consequently฀similar฀interests.฀
When฀ describing฀ the฀ conflict฀ that฀
they฀ experienced,฀ teams฀ with฀ similar฀
majors฀and฀those฀with฀mixed฀majors฀all฀
reported฀minimal฀conflicts฀with฀personalities,฀ ideas,฀ procedures,฀ culture,฀ gender,฀and฀age฀differences.฀The฀teams฀usually฀ allowed฀ their฀ leaders฀ to฀ lead,฀ and฀
members฀worked฀together฀cooperatively฀
to฀ make฀ decisions฀ and฀ to฀ complete฀ the฀
work.฀ A฀ chi-square฀ test฀ (see฀ Table฀ 2)฀
showed฀ that฀ no฀ significant฀ differences฀ existed฀ in฀ how฀ teams฀ with฀ similar฀
majors฀versus฀teams฀with฀mixed฀majors฀
did฀ their฀ work.฀ Most฀ of฀ the฀ time,฀ team฀
members฀ seemed฀ to฀ share฀ the฀ work฀
fairly฀ evenly฀ and฀ felt฀ that฀ they฀ accomplished฀ a฀ great฀ deal.฀ Team฀ members฀
also฀ reported฀ that฀ they฀ had฀ developed฀
team฀skills.฀
DISCUSSION
The฀ results฀ of฀ the฀ present฀ research฀
suggest฀ that฀ students฀ work฀ fairly฀ well฀
in฀teams฀and฀that฀they฀are฀not฀very฀concerned฀about฀differences฀in฀major.฀There฀
are฀differences,฀however,฀that฀have฀pedagogical฀implications.
Students฀in฀both฀similar-majors฀teams฀
and฀ mixed-majors฀ teams,฀ for฀ the฀ most฀
part,฀ felt฀ that฀ they฀ were฀ full฀ members฀
of฀ their฀ teams.฀ However,฀ students฀ in฀
mixed-majors฀ teams฀ were฀ not฀ as฀ comfortable฀ expressing฀ their฀ ideas.฀ Therefore,฀ diversity฀ among฀ team฀ members฀
268฀

Journal฀of฀Education฀for฀Business

may฀not฀necessarily฀mean฀that฀a฀variety฀
of฀ ideas฀ will฀ be฀ presented฀ unless฀ there฀
is฀ intervention,฀ such฀ as฀ coaching฀ or฀
inspired฀ leadership.฀ Factors฀ other฀ than฀
diversity฀ of฀ majors฀ should฀ be฀ present฀
to฀ promote฀ innovation฀ and฀ creativity.฀
Still,฀teams฀were฀able฀to฀make฀decisions฀฀
easily฀and฀to฀efficiently฀and฀effectively฀
complete฀their฀tasks.฀
Most฀ of฀ the฀ time,฀ team฀ members฀
worked฀together฀well,฀probably฀because฀
members฀experienced฀little฀conflict฀concerning฀personalities,฀procedures,฀ideas,฀
culture,฀ gender,฀ or฀ age.฀ Teaching฀ team฀
skills฀ at฀ the฀ beginning฀ of฀ the฀ semester฀
and฀ reinforcing฀ communication฀ skills฀
throughout฀the฀semester฀may฀have฀contributed฀ to฀ members’฀ working฀ together฀
well.฀In฀addition,฀members฀tended฀to฀be฀
more฀cooperative฀than฀competitive.
Often฀the฀person฀with฀ideas฀assumed฀
a฀ leadership฀ role,฀ but฀ occasionally฀ one฀
person฀would฀dominate฀the฀team.฀However,฀ most฀ of฀ the฀ time฀ team฀ members฀
let฀their฀leaders฀lead,฀and฀members฀felt฀
that฀ their฀ leaders฀ were฀ effective.฀When฀
projects฀ needed฀ to฀ be฀ completed,฀ team฀
members฀worked฀cooperatively.฀In฀other฀
words,฀ team฀ members฀ made฀ decisions,฀
shared฀ the฀ work,฀ and฀ accomplished฀ a฀
great฀deal.฀
As฀ cohesiveness฀ increased฀ during฀
the฀ semester,฀ more฀ friendships฀ developed฀among฀members฀of฀similar-majors฀
teams฀ than฀ among฀ members฀ of฀ mixedmajors฀ teams.฀ The฀ findings฀ suggest฀
that฀effective฀teams฀have฀members฀who฀
have฀developed฀special฀feelings฀for฀each฀
other฀ and฀ have฀ members฀ who฀ complement฀each฀other.฀
Implications฀and฀
Recommendations
Team฀learning฀appears฀to฀be฀an฀effective฀ teaching฀ method,฀ according฀ to฀ the฀
findings฀ of฀ this฀ study,฀ and฀ the฀ quality฀
of฀interpersonal฀communication฀among฀
team฀ members฀ determines฀ the฀ effectiveness฀of฀the฀team.฀Instructors฀should฀
use฀ teams฀ of฀ mixed฀ majors฀ to฀ prepare฀
students฀ for฀ the฀ real฀ world฀ and฀ to฀ help฀
them฀work฀on฀goal฀focus,฀despite฀differences.฀ Students฀ should฀ be฀ encouraged฀
to฀ express฀ their฀ ideas,฀ especially฀ when฀
they฀ are฀ members฀ of฀ diverse฀ teams,฀
and฀ teams฀ of฀ similar฀ majors฀ should฀ be฀
formed฀ if฀ the฀ goal฀ is฀ to฀ develop฀ cohe-

siveness฀ within฀ majors.฀ In฀ addition,฀
instructors฀should฀continue฀to฀use฀teams฀
that฀ work฀ together฀ during฀ the฀ entire฀
semester,฀ and฀ they฀ should฀ instruct฀ students฀ at฀ the฀ beginning฀ of฀ the฀ semester฀
on฀ group฀ development,฀ phases฀ of฀ team฀
development,฀steps฀in฀dealing฀with฀conflict,฀and฀the฀decision-making฀process.
Future฀research฀should฀be฀conducted฀
both฀ (a)฀ to฀ identify฀ and฀ develop฀ pedagogy฀that฀would฀help฀students฀in฀diverse฀
teams฀to฀express฀their฀ideas฀more฀willingly฀and฀(b)฀to฀discover฀ways฀of฀developing฀ cohesiveness฀ within฀ diverse฀
teams.฀ Teamwork฀ may฀ mean฀ the฀ difference฀between฀success฀and฀failure฀for฀
many฀workers฀and฀companies.
NOTES
Janet฀K.฀Winter,฀EdD,฀is฀a฀professor฀of฀management฀ and฀ teaches฀ primarily฀ business฀ communications;฀she฀researches฀in฀the฀areas฀of฀business฀
communications฀and฀management.฀
Karen฀K.฀Waner,฀PhD,฀is฀a฀professor฀of฀management฀and฀teaches฀and฀researches฀in฀the฀areas฀of฀
business฀communications฀and฀management.฀
Joan฀ C.฀ Neal-Mansfield,฀ PhD,฀ is฀ a฀ professor฀
of฀ management฀ and฀ dean฀ of฀ the฀ Harmon฀ College฀of฀Business฀Administration.฀She฀teaches฀and฀
researches฀ in฀ the฀ areas฀ of฀ business฀ communications฀and฀management.
Correspondence฀ concerning฀ this฀ article฀ should฀
be฀ addressed฀ to฀ Prof.฀ Janet฀ K.฀ Winter,฀ Dockery฀
400,฀University฀of฀Central฀Missouri,฀Warrensburg,฀
MO฀64093,฀USA.
E-mail:฀winter@ucmo.edu
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฀

May/June฀2008฀

269