| Abstract: |
A common finding in social sciences is that member change hinders group
functioning and performance. However, questions remain as to why member change
negatively affects group performance and what are some ways to alleviate the
negative effects of member change on performance? To answer these questions we
conduct an experiment in which we investigate the effect of newcomers on a
group’s ability to coordinate efficiently. Participants play a coordination
game in a four-person group for the first part of the experiment, and then two
members of the group are replaced with new participants, and the newly formed
group plays the game for the second part of the experiment. Our results show
that the arrival of newcomers decreases trust among group members and this
decrease in trust negatively affects group performance. Knowing the
performance history of the arriving newcomers mitigates the negative effect of
their arrival, but only when newcomers also know the oldtimers performance
history. Surprisingly, in groups that performed poorly prior to the newcomers’
arrival, the distrust generated by newcomers is mainly between oldtimers about
each other rather than about the newcomers. |