Training Team Performance‐related Assertiveness

The present paper extends the existing literature on assertiveness in a way that supports industrial training as well as the selection of individuals for team positions. Data are reported from three studies that examined determinants of team performance‐related assertiveness. First, data from 149 college students demonstrated that assertiveness consists of multiple dimensions which were not all related to performance in a team decision‐making task. Second, data obtained from 225 business students indicated that correlations among self‐report measures and peer ratings of the same assertive responses assigned by intact team members varied according to the interpersonal context (i.e., personal, stranger, work related) in which scale items were framed. Third, data from 60 college students suggested that team performance‐related assertiveness has a significant skill component. Whereas both attitudinally focused and skill‐based training improved attitudes toward team member assertiveness, practice and feedback were essential to producing behavioral effects. Implications for selection and team training are discussed.