Running head: EFFECTS OF GROUP COMPOSITION AND CONSENSUS TRAINING Effects of Group Composition and Consensus Training on the Assembly Effect

In light of the growing reliance on teams to solve the complex problems faced in organizations, research that demonstrates how team performance can be improved beyond the performance of individuals is warranted. This study investigated whether group performance could be significantly improved by forming groups with members heterogeneous in information-processing preferences, as measured by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), and by providing those groups with training to facilitate consensus on the group's solution to a complex, multistage decision task. Comparisons of assembly effect occurrences (i.e., solutions of higher quality than those that could be achieved by any individual within the group working alone) among undergraduate student groups (N = 38) differing in composition (homogeneous vs. heterogeneous) and mode of consensual training (trained vs. not trained) were conducted through a nonparametric statistical analysis. The results of the analysis supported only the hypothesis predicting that the proportion of trained groups producing the assembly effect would be significantly greater, statistically, than that of the not-trained groups. However, a statistically significant interaction effect in a nonhypothesized direction was found. Implications and recommendations based on the findings are offered