Group Cohesiveness and Productivity: A Closer Look

Although many organization researchers regard group cohesiveness as a key variable in their theorizing, the presumed importance of the cohesiveness construct has not always been accompanied by a corresponding emphasis on theoretical and empirical advances. This paper focuses primarily on the difficulties associated with the measurement of group cohesiveness, particularly as they pertain to the contentious relationship between group cohesiveness and productivity. Little is known for certain about this relationship in spite of four decades of investigation. One possible explanation for the inconclusive findings which characterize this literature is that no two studies reviewed here operationalized cohesiveness in exactly the same way. An emphasis on consistent and uniform measurement, and on the use of multiple measures of cohesiveness, should greatly improve the quality of future research.