Partially Distributed Team Cultural Diversity Conflict
Abstract:
Globally distributed teams are a prevalent means of accomplishing work. A common global team configuration is the partially distributed team (PDT). In this hybrid structure, a global team is composed of multiple subteams, with each subteam located in a different country while members within a given subteam are co-located. One commonly occurring factor that affects the performance of PDTs is conflict management. This thesis considers the role of cultural diversity in conflict management in PDTs and explores the question, “How does cultural diversity affect team conflict in partially distributed teams?” Cultural diversity is measured from three aspects: ethnicity, language, and home country. This thesis reviews the literature on PDTs and conflict, and covers the research method, data collection and analysis procedure. Findings and conclusions are presented as well as limitations and possible areas for future research.
