A theory of chronotype diversity and team performance

Abstract

What are the consequences for team performance when individual team members have differently timed daily performance cycles? To answer this question, we introduce the concept of chronotype diversity which represents the level to which a team is diverse in terms of its members’ physiological predilections for earlier or later daily performance peaks. Integrating individual-level biological and psychological theories of chronotypes with management research on team diversity, team processes and performance, we develop a framework that delineates how chronotype diversity affects team performance. We incorporate emerging conceptualizations of team workload capacity to suggest that chronotype diversity holds both positive and negative implications for team performance, depending on the nature of the team’s task. Specifically, we argue that a team’s ability to perform complex and sustained-attention tasks is a function of the configuration of its members’ chronotypes and the timing of task performance. Our frame...