Effects Of Age Diversity Research Articles

The Effect of Age Diversity in Groups on Peer Evaluations and Individual Performance

The Effect of Age Diversity in Groups on Peer Evaluations and Individual Performance

Gender-specific impact of age diversity on the performance of small teams: empirical evidence from professional biathlon relays

ABSTRACT Research question A growing strand of studies either analyzes the effects of age or gender diversity on team performance. We contribute to this literature by analyzing whether there is a gender-specific impact of age diversity on team performance. Based on the categorization-elaboration model, we first predict that age diversity in teams leads to better team performance. Second, we hypothesize that gender-mixed teams with age diversity perform significantly worse than single-sex teams with age diversity. Research methods Our research question is analyzed for biathlon relays of the seasons 2009/10–2016/17. We apply pooled OLS, Tobit and random effects regressions to explain the relay's shooting precision by the relay's age diversity and the gender composition including several controls. Results and findings The empirical analysis for male, female and gender-mixed professional biathlon relays supports our first hypothesis. Moreover, gender-mixed teams significantly outperform all-female teams. Implications Implications of this finding are that sport officials and coaches of professional athletes, should be aware of the positive effect of age diversity on team performance but consider that this link might depend on the gender composition of the respective team.

Perceived organizational values and innovation: The role of transactive memory and age diversity in military teams

ABSTRACT This study investigates the mediating role of transactive memory system (TMS) in the relationship between perception of innovation value (VIN) and team innovation, as well as the moderating effect of age diversity for the TMS – team innovation relationship. The study of this moderated-mediation model concerning VIN, TMS, and team diversity as a contextual factor, is especially relevant in military teams which are directly concerned by military values, have high needs of effective coordination, and naturally are composed by young soldiers working with older leaders. To test our model, we evaluated 453 employees composing 48 military units from Italy’s Air Force. Results confirmed that VIN is positively related to TMS, and that the latter has a positive effect on team innovation except at high levels of age diversity where the effect is reduced and non-significant. These findings highlight the importance of identifying and managing age differences, sharing common and distributed expertise, and promoting innovative initiatives in the military. Theoretical backgrounds, results, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed.

Does age diversity boost technological innovation? Exploring the moderating role of HR practices

We shed new light on the linkages between age diversity and technological innovation, and explore the moderating effect of human resource practices on such relationships. Based on a linked dataset that contains cross-sectional survey data and longitudinal employer–employee data from Luxembourg, we show that the effect of age diversity on innovation depends on the age distribution pattern of employees: positive for firms characterized by heterogeneous age groups (variety), negative for those dominated by polarized age groups (polarization). HR practices such as information sharing mitigate the adverse effects of age polarization on innovation. Practices enhancing development such as training are found to play a significant and negative role in moderating the relationship between age diversity and innovation. We illustrate how academics and practitioners may use HR practices within the context of a heterogeneous aging workforce and the age-related differences in values and abilities between generations.

Age and gender diversity as determinants of performance and health in a public organization: The role of task complexity and group size.

The influence of age and gender composition on group performance and self-reported health disorders was examined with data from 4,538 federal tax employees working in 222 natural work unit groups. As hypothesized, age diversity correlated positively with performance only in groups solving complex decision-making tasks, and this finding was replicated when analyzing performance data collected 1 year later. Age diversity was also positively correlated with health disorders--but only in groups working on routine decision-making tasks. Gender composition also had a significant effect on group performance, such that groups with a high proportion of female employees performed worse and reported more health disorders than did gender-diverse teams. As expected, effects of gender composition were most pronounced in large groups. Effects of age diversity were found when controlling for gender diversity and vice versa. Thus, age and gender diversity seem to play a unique role in performance and well-being. The moderating role of task complexity for both effects of age diversity and the moderating role of group size for both effects of gender diversity further suggest that the impact of these 2 variables depends on different group processes (e.g., knowledge exchange, variation in gender salience).

Age Composition of the Spawning Stock Does Not Always Influence Recruitment

The concept that the age composition of the spawning stock is an important determinant of recruitment is wide-spread. However, the number of populations and species where this has actually been studied is fairly limited. This study explores the effect of age composition on recruitment in one American plaice (Hippoglossoides platessoides) and three Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) populations. Both the effect of age diversity and the effect of the presence of first time spawners are explored. No consistent relationship between age composition of the spawning stock and recruitment was found for the populations examined. We conclude that age composition of the spawning stock may not be universally important. Further research is needed to explore how common the effect of age composition on recruitment is and under which conditions age composition exerts an important influence on recruitment.