In this dissertation, I investigate individuals’ image-construction behaviors in diverse teams. Going beyond existing diversity research that treats different social categories as equivalent, I focus on the stereotype content of various social categories. Drawing on social identity theory, stereotype content model, and the self-regulation literature, I examine the stereotype management process as an approach to constructing a desirable image on diverse teams. Specifically, I identify a dual-path self-regulation process—self-monitoring for competence and self-monitoring for warmth—and propose a joint effect among demographic dissimilarity, demographic characteristics, and perceived upward mobility related to self-monitoring behaviors. Through these mechanisms, individuals portray desira...[ Read more ]

In this dissertation, I investigate individuals’ image-construction behaviors in diverse teams. Going beyond existing diversity research that treats different social categories as equivalent, I focus on the stereotype content of various social categories. Drawing on social identity theory, stereotype content model, and the self-regulation literature, I examine the stereotype management process as an approach to constructing a desirable image on diverse teams. Specifically, I identify a dual-path self-regulation process—self-monitoring for competence and self-monitoring for warmth—and propose a joint effect among demographic dissimilarity, demographic characteristics, and perceived upward mobility related to self-monitoring behaviors. Through these mechanisms, individuals portray desirable images that contribute to their group identification, respect, and individual performance ratings from others. I tested my dissertation model with multi-wave survey design. The results from a sample of 1,211 kindergarten teachers in 173 groups from 57 kindergartens supported the dual-path self-monitoring process as a mode of constructing desirable self-images. I also discuss the implications of this study for team diversity and relational demography research.

Keywords: Team diversity; social identity; stereotype content; self-monitoring