Team conflict types include task conflict, relationship conflict, and process conflict. Whereas differences in views about the task (task conflict) are often argued to be beneficial, incompatibilities involving personal issues (relationship conflict) and execution issues (process conflict) are often argued to be harmful. However, previous empirical research has tended to treat team conflict types as independent from each other despite their natural coexistence in teams. In two separate studies and one replication study, we identified latent patterns of team conflict, in the form of conflict profiles, that were defined by distinct levels of task conflict, relationship conflict, and process conflict. In Study 1, we investigated whether the conflict profiles had implications for team conflict management and team potency. In Study 2, we examined the generalizability of the conflict profiles to teams with longer life cycles, and we investigated the implications of conflict profiles for team performance. Findings indicated that teams can be reliably assigned to particular profiles of team conflict and that these profiles replicate well. The results also

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Much of the previous research on the emergence of team-level constructs has overlooked their inherently dynamic nature by relying on static, cross-sectional approaches. Although theoretical arguments regarding emergent states have underscored the importance of considering time, minimal work has examined the dynamics of emergent states. In the present research, we address this limitation by investigating the dynamic nature of group potency, a crucial emergent state, over time. Theory around the “better-than-average” effect (i.e., an individual’s tendency to think he/she is better than the average person) suggests that individuals may have elevated expectations of their group’s early potency, but may decrease over time as team members interact gain a more realistic perspective of their group’s potential. In addition, as members gain experience with each other, they will develop a shared understanding of their team’s attributes. The current study used latent growth and consensus emergence modeling to examine how potency changes over time, and its relation with team effectiveness. Further, in accordance with the input-process-output framework, we investigated how group potency mediated the relations between team-level compositions of conscientiousness and extraversion and team effectiveness. We collected data at three time points throughout an engineering design course from 337 first-year engineering students that comprised 77 project teams. Results indicated that group potency decreased over time in a linear trend, and that group consensus increased over time. We also found that teams’ initial potency was a significant predictor of team effectiveness, but that change in potency was not related to team effectiveness. Finally, we found that the indirect effect linking conscientiousness to effectiveness, through initial potency, was supported. Overall, the current study offers a unique understanding of the emergence of group potency, and facilitate a number theoretical and practical implications, which are discussed.

The construct of equity sensitivity describes an individual's preference about his/her desired input to outcome ratio. Individuals high on equity sensitivity tend to be more input oriented, and are often called “Benevolents.” Individuals low on equity sensitivity are more outcome oriented, and are described as “Entitleds.” Given that equity sensitivity has often been described as a trait, the purpose of the present study was to examine major personality correlates of equity sensitivity, so as to inform both the nature of equity sensitivity, and the potential processes through which certain broad personality traits may relate to outcomes. We examined the personality correlates of equity sensitivity across three studies (total N = 1170), two personality models (i.e., the Big Five and HEXACO), the two most common measures of equity sensitivity (i.e., the Equity Preference Questionnaire and Equity Sensitivity Inventory), and using both self and peer reports of personality (in Study 3). Although results varied somewhat across samples, the personality variables of Conscientiousness and Honesty-Humility, followed by Agreeableness, were the most robust predictors of equity sensitivity. Individuals higher on these traits were more likely to be Benevolents, whereas those lower on these traits were more likely to be Entitleds. Although some associations between Extraversion, Openness, and Neuroticism and equity sensitivity were observed, these were generally not robust. Overall, it appears that there are several prominent personality variables underlying equity sensitivity, and that the addition of the HEXACO model's dimension of Honesty-Humility substantially contributes to our understanding of equity sensitivity.

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