Multiple teams, multiple roles, multiple consequences: are polychronics the better multiteamers?

Abstract

I investigate how fragmentation of time across multiple teams influences the perception of role conflict at different levels of individual polychronic orientation (IPO; Bluedorn, Kaufman, & Lane, 1992). Rooted in multiple perspectives of role theory (i.e., role strain, role accumulation, and role transition), I propose two mechanisms leading from fragmentation of time to perception of role conflict (i.e., inter-role conflict and person-role conflict). Building on this, I argue that monochronics perceive increased levels of role conflict in multiteaming situations. Meanwhile, their polychronic counterparts are predicted to even report reduced perceptions of role conflict at an increasing fragmentation of time across multiple teams. Finally, I also examine conditional indirect effects on distal outcomes, such as job performance, job satisfaction, and well-being. The proposed model is tested in a longitudinal sample of 341 German employees. Multiple regression and bootstrapping analyses strongly support the hypothesized relationships. I believe that my work holds intriguing implications for research on multiple team membership (MTM), role theory, and polychronicity. Moreover, I discuss implications for organizational practice and propose several directions for future research.