Capturing the Elusive “Value in Diversity” Effect: Individuation, Self-Verification and Performance in Small Groups

A prospective study examined the role of identity negotiation processes in determining the impact of diversity on the performance of small groups of MBA students. When group members (N = 253) formed relatively positive impressions of one another, higher diversity encouraged participants to individuate other group members, which encouraged self-verification processes, which in turn enhanced performance on creative tasks. When the initial impressions of group members were relatively negative, diversity encouraged in-group homogenization, which in turn fostered appraisal effects, which enhanced performance on computational tasks. These findings suggest that reaping the full benefits of diversity will require a deeper understanding of the identity negotiation processes that mediate its impact.