Purpose: Transcultural nurse researchers are exposed to the challenges of developing and maintaining a multiethnic team. With the example of a multicultural research study of family caregivers conducted in the Miami-Dade area, the authors guide the readers through steps of developing a culturally competent and effective team. Design: Pointing out challenges and successes, the authors illustrate team processes and successful strategies relative to recruitment of qualified members, training and team maintenance, and evaluation of team effectiveness. Method: With relevant concepts from the literature applied to practical examples, the authors demonstrate how cultural team competence grows in a supportive work environment.
Alba, R. (1999). Immigration and the American realities of assimilation and multiculturalism. Sociological Forum, 14, 3-25.
2.
Amason, A.C. (1996). Distinguishing the effects of functional and dysfunctional conflict on strategic decision making: Resolving a paradox for management teams. Academy of Management Journal, 39(1), 123-148.
3.
Appelbaum, S.H., Shapiro, B., & Elbaz, D. (1998). The management of multicultural group conflict . Team Performance Management, 4(5), 211-234.
4.
Austin, J.R. (1997). A cognitive framework for understanding demographic influences in groups. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 5(4), 342-359.
5.
Baugh, S.G., & Graen, G.B. (1997). Effects of team gender and racial composition on perceptions of team performance in cross-functional teams. Group & Organization Management, 22(3), 366-383.
6.
Bliss, J. (2004). Effective team management by district nurses. British Journal of Community Nursing, 9(12), 524-526.
7.
Campinha-Bacote, J. (2002). The process of cultural competence in the delivery of healthcare services: A model of care. Journal of Transcultural Nursing, 13(3), 181-184.
8.
Day, D., Dosa, M., & Jorgensen, C. (1995). The transfer of research information within and by multicultural teams. Information Processing & Management , 31, 89-100.
9.
Foldy, E.G. (2004). Learning from diversity: A theoretical exploration . Public Administration Review, 64, 529-538.
10.
Hamers, J.F., & Blanc, M.H. (2000). Bilinguality and bilingualism (2nd ed.). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
11.
Jehn, K.A. (1994). Enhancing effectiveness: An investigation of advantages and disadvantages of value-based intragroup conflict. International Journal of Conflict Management, 5, 223-238.
12.
Jehn, K.A., Northcraft, G., & Neale, M. (1999). Why differences make a difference: A field study of diversity, conflict, and performance in workgroups. Administrative Science Quarterly, 44, 741-763.
13.
Ji, L., Zhang, Z., & Nisbett, R.E. (2004). Is it culture or is it language? Examination of language effects in cross-cultural research on categorization. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 87, 57-65.
14.
Johnson, D.W., & Johnson, F.P. (1996). Joining together: Group theory and group skills (7th ed). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
15.
Miller, J.G. (1999). Cultural psychology: Implications for basic psychological theory. Psychological Science, 10(2), 85-91.
16.
Milliken, F.J., & Martins, L.L. (1996). Searching for common threads: Understanding the multiple effects of diversity in organizational groups. Academy of Management Review, 21, 402-433.
17.
Mishler, W., & Rose, R. (2001). What are the origins of political trust? Testing institutional and cultural theories in post-communist societies. Comparative Political Studies, 34, 30-62.
18.
Nibler, R., & Harris, K.L. (2003). The effects of culture and cohesiveness on intragroup conflict and effectiveness. Journal of Social Psychology, 143, 613-632.
19.
Owens, D.A., & Neale, M.A. (1999). The dubious benefit of group heterogeneity in highly uncertain situations: Too much of a good thing? (Working Paper). Berkley: School of Business, University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved July 12, 2006, from http://www.2.owen.vanderbilt.edu/david.owens/Papers/2001%20Owens%20Neale%20Dubious%20Group%20Heterogeneity.PDF
20.
Pasick, R.J., Stewart, S.L., Bird, J.A., & D'Onofrio, C.N. (2001). Quality of data in multiethnic health surveys. Public Health Reports, 116(1), 223-243.
21.
Putnam, R.D. (1993). The prosperous community: Social capital and public life. The American Prospect, 4(13), 35-42.
22.
Sauquet, A., & Jacobs, G. (1998). Can we learn from Herodotus? Journal of Managerial Psychology, 13(3/4), 167-177.
23.
Shaw, J.B., & Barrett-Power, E. (1998). The effects of diversity on small work group processes and performance. Human Relations , 51, 1307-1325.
24.
Solomon, C.M. (1995). Global teams: The ultimate collaboration. Personnel Journal, 74(9), 49-58.
25.
Tienda, M. (2002). Demography and the social contract. Demography, 39, 587-616.
26.
U.S. Census Bureau. (2005). Statistical abstracts of the United States 2000-2005. Retrieved July 12, 2006, from http://www.census.gov
27.
Watson, W.E., Johnson, L., Kamalesh, K., & Critelli, J. (1998). Process gain and process loss: Comparing interpersonal processes and performance of culturally diverse and non-diverse teams across time. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 22, 409-430.
28.
Watson, W., Johnson, L., & Merrit, D. (1998). Team orientation, self-orientation, and diversity in task groups. Group & Organization Management, 23(2), 161-188.
29.
Williams, K., & O'Reilly, C. (1998). Demography and diversity in organizations: A review of 40 years of research. In B. Staw & R. Sutton (Eds.), Research in organizational behavior (Vol. 20, pp. 77-140). Stamford, CT: JAI.
