Interplay among innovativeness, cognitive intelligence, emotional intelligence and social capital of work teams

摘要

Purpose - The paper seeks to highlight the key value changes in the current economy, which is shifting towards intangible assets such as innovativeness, cognitive intelligence, emotional intelligence, social capital, and also a shift from individual to team working. Design/methodology/approach - The paper takes the form of an examination of the relevant literature and divergent thinking.Findings - On the basis of a critical analysis of the literature it is found that the outcome of all factors (internal as well as external) influencing the functioning of a team/group would lead to a "general ability" which can be conceived as composed of three different and interrelated abilities, termed the "cognitive intelligence", "emotional intelligence" and "social capital" of the team/group. These three abilities could explain a wide range of group behaviors. A conceptual model is developed to explain the innovativeness of work teams in terms of these three group abilities.Research limitations/implications - The general and inclusive nature of the variables proposed in the model hold promise for proving more stable explanations, and thus a robust model, of highly complex phenomena of work team innovativeness. By associating with innovativeness this model brings the emerging concepts of group intelligence to the attention of management researchers. The underlining and classification of the fundamental abilities of groups into three basic categories (i.e. cognitive, emotional and social), provides a direction for future research in the under-studied "cognitive" and "affective" dimensions of groups/teams. The model presented here is a conceptual model and needs to be validated empirically.Practical implications - For intervention and practical purposes, the variables proposed in the model would provide a more comprehensive framework for the assessment of group functioning, and work as a guide for building effective teams and changing the function of the team in desired directions.Originality/value - Although the relevant literature consists of many partial and indirect hints and indications in the direction as conceived by the model, the full model as such is original. The authors' primary contribution is in perceiving the holistic picture of the phenomena (i.e. basic abilities of groups) and relating them to innovativeness.