A pleasure working together? : the effects of dissimilarity in team member conscientiousness on team temporal processes and individual satisfaction

In this study of 43 student project teams, we tested a multi-level mediation model of the relationship between dissimilarity in conscientiousness, team temporal processes, and team member satisfaction. We distinguished between individual-level dissimilarity in conscientiousness (i.e., the distance between an individual member and his or her team mates), and team-level dissimilarity in conscientiousness (i.e., the overall dissimilarity within the team). Individual-level dissimilarity in conscientiousness had a direct negative effect on team members' satisfaction with the team, but did not affect their satisfaction with the team's performance. Team-level dissimilarity in conscientiousness indirectly affected both types of satisfaction negatively as it impeded early agreement about the temporal aspects of task execution, which, in turn, hindered coordinated action in later stages of team task execution.