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Adaptability

Definition

"A change in team performance, in response to a salient cue or cue stream, that leads to a functional outcome for the entire team."  (Burke et al., 2006, p. 1190)

Key References

  • Walker, B., Holling, C. S., Carpenter, S. R., & Kinzig, A. P. (2004). Resilience, adaptability and transformability in social-ecological systems. Ecology and Society, 9(2). https://doi.org/10.5751/es-00650-090205
    • Asserted that an accurate interpretation of resilience includes it as part of a system of three attributes; resilience, adaptability, and transformability.
  • LePine, J. A. (2003). Team adaptation and postchange performance: Effects of team composition in terms of members’ cognitive ability and personality. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(1), 27–39. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.88.1.27
    • Extended research on individual differences and individual-level adaptation.
    • Found that the relationship was mediated by role structure adaptation.
  • Burke, C. S., Stagl, K. C., Salas, E., Pierce, L., & Kendall, D. (2006). Understanding team adaptation: A conceptual analysis and model. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91(6), 1189–1207. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.91.6.1189
    • Provided a conceptualization of team adaptation rooted in cognitive, human factors, and industrial–organizational psychology literature.
    • Advanced directions and implications for future research in team adaptation.

Key Measurements

  • van Dam & Meulders 2021: 10-item scale of employee adaptability

Recent Articles

  • Porter, C. O. L. H., Webb, J. W., & Gogus, C. I. (2010). When goal orientations collide: Effects of learning and performance orientation on team adaptability in response to workload imbalance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(5), 935–943. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0019637
    • Developed hypotheses regarding the interactive effects of collective learning and performance orientation on team adaptability in the face of sudden workload changes.
    • Found that teams lacking slack resources were better able to balance learning and performance orientation to adapt over time with practice.
  • Detzen, N., Verbeeten, F.H.M., Gamm, N. and Möller, K. (2018), "Formal controls and team adaptability in new product development projects", Management Decision, 56(7), 1541-1558. https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-07-2017-0692
    • Investigated the effects of target rigidity and process autonomy on team adaptability in new product development projects.
    • Found that target rigidity and process autonomy support team adaptability, and team adaptability mediates the impact of these formal controls on project success.
  • Klarner, P., Sarstedt, M., Hoeck, M., & Ringle, C. M. (2013). Disentangling the effects of team competences, Team Adaptability, and client communication on the performance of Management Consulting Teams. Long Range Planning, 46(3), 258–286. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2013.03.001
    • Studied the effects of team processesand team competence on consulting teams by examing the teams' adaptability to their task and interactions with their clients.
    • Found that the relationship between team processes and competence is sequentially mediated by client communication and next team adaptability.