Team Diversity, Learning, and Innovation: A Mediation Model

ABSTRACT

This study aims to examine the direct and mediating relationships between team diversity, individual and team learning, and individual and team innovation performance. Using a sample of 266 white-collar professionals in Hong Kong, we found that team diversity plays a substantial role in improving both individual and team learning. Individual learning and team learning are independent and positively related to individual and team innovation performance. Individual learning partially mediates the relationship between team diversity and team learning. Individual innovation performance is found to be a partial mediator of team learning and team innovation performance. This study contributes in understanding the unexplored mediating effects of individual learning on team learning, and the individual innovation performance on team innovation performance. Team diversity is found to be the main enabler in the overall model. It is hoped that the research paradigm of this article will generate further development of information systems and technology literature.

KEYWORDS:

• Team diversity
• individual learning
• team learning
• individual innovation performance
• team innovation performance