The Effects of Leader-Member Exchange on Member Performance in Virtual World Teams

Abstract

Special IssueUnderstanding the role of leadership in virtual world teams may help shed light on how to manage synchronous and highly interdependent work activities. Based upon leader-member exchange (LMX) theory, we propose that the relationship between a leader and a team member (LMX) influences 1) the degree to which a team member is allocated resources by the leader (empowerment and group assignments), 2) the degree to which a team member develops relational resources with the team (trust, obligation, norms, and identification), and 3) the extent to which a team member receives or develops resources results in higher levels of individual performance. Our findings from a longitudinal field study of one large virtual world team in the massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) EverQuest suggest that the leader member relationship does impact members' allocation and development of resources, and that it's not just the quantity of members' resources, but also the type of member resources, that has a direct influence on performance. Our findings also indicate that the influence of the leader-member relationship on member performance is fully mediated by the allocation and development of resources. Surprisingly, there was no relationship between LMX, trust, and performance, which suggests that trust may not be as vital in virtual teams where everyone's actions are visible. Lastly, the findings suggest that building relational capital to facilitate the transformation from self to collective interest may be an effective leadership tactic when managing large virtual teams or social collectives.

Virtual Team Networks

“…One advantage is that some teams, such as guilds, play with each other for longer periods of time, allowing for longitudinal studies of real teams and their group dynamics [1]. In addition, studies on MMOGs may replicate patterns in other synchronous VTs [16]. MMOG studies can test these patterns using traditional surveys [16] or by using behavioral data from player actions [25].…”

“…In addition, studies on MMOGs may replicate patterns in other synchronous VTs [16]. MMOG studies can test these patterns using traditional surveys [16] or by using behavioral data from player actions [25]. Various VT performance factors can also be evaluated through group-level effects on individual player success [16] or the group's overall success.…”

“…MMOG studies can test these patterns using traditional surveys [16] or by using behavioral data from player actions [25]. Various VT performance factors can also be evaluated through group-level effects on individual player success [16] or the group's overall success. In this paper, we use one MMOG to test the ideal levels of different types of social dependence, in both affiliation-and task-oriented social networks, which maximizes each team's overall performance.…”

“…Most of the research on VT effectiveness only looks at teams as isolated units [12,16], given a problem of size; in this paper, we extend that foundation to ask how the structure of teams impacts success, especially situating teams amongst each other in a larger network (because, again, teams are frequently not isolated and interact with other groups). Using guilds in a large MMOG called Dragon Nest (DN) as a case study, we adapt Oh, Chung, & Labianca's [33] theoretical framework of "group social capital" to test how social capital within and beyond teams affect their overall effectiveness.…”

La relation entre l’intensité perçue d’utilisation de la messagerie électronique et la qualité de la relation hiérarchique

“…Afin de favoriser la construction d'un contexte social partagé, les supérieurs hiérarchi-ques favorisent les échanges d'information (Simard et al, 2005), et développent des comportements adaptés aux échanges électroniques. De la même façon, les subordonnés optent pour des attitudes et comportements aptes à équilibrer la relation (Goh et Wasko, 2012). L'échange interpersonnel qui s'instaure entre le supérieur et ses collaborateurs devient alors déterminant sur le rôle joué par le salarié au sein de son service (Saint-Michel et Wielhorski, 2011).…”