Indian Journal of Industrial Relations: Economics & Social Dev.

Open Access Open Access  Restricted Access Subscription Access
Open Access Open Access Open Access  Restricted Access Restricted Access Subscription Access

Impact of Diversity in Networks on Academic Performance of Management Students


Affiliations
1 Doctoral Student - Human Resource Management, Indian Institute of Management Culcutta, India
     

   Subscribe/Renew Journal


Scholars have highlighted the significance of a diverse group on i ndivi dual ’s pe rformance and have argued in favor of diversity within a group, institution or organization. However, the impact of diversity within one’s networks has not bee n ex pl ored. Eve n within a diverse group, a student might approach someone coming from similar background. The present study attempted to explore, in the context of Indian management education, how does diversity within one’s networks impacts student’s academic performance. For the study, 107 students from one of the toptier and oldest institutes of management in India were selected. Their network, and diversity within their networks was mapped and calculated. The findings hinted that diversity within networks might not always result in a positive outcome.
Subscription Login to verify subscription
User
Notifications
Font Size


  • Baldwin, T. T., Bedell, M. D. & Johnson, J. L.(1997), “The Social Fabric of a Team-based MBA Program: Network Effects on Student Satisfaction and Performance”, Academy of Management Journal, 40(6): 136997.

  • Bowman, N. A. (2010), “College Diversity Experiences and Cognitive Development/ : A Meta-Analysis”, Review of Educational Research, 80(1): 4–33. http://doi.org/ 10.3102/0034654309 352495

  • Brass, D. J. (1981), “Structural Relationships, Job Characteristics, and Worker Satisfaction and Performance”, Administrative Science Quarterly, 26 (3): 331-48

  • Brewer, M. B. & Brown, R. J. (1998), “Intergroup Relations”, in DT Gilbert, ST Fiske, and G. Lindzey (eds), The Handbook of Social Psychology, McGraw-Hill, New York

  • Coser, R. (1975), “The Complexity of Roles as a Seedbed of Individual Autonomy” in K. Robert, (ed), in The Idea of Social Structure, Harcourt Brace, New York.

  • Cox, T. H., Lobel, S. A. & McLeod, P. L. (1991), “Effects of Ethnic Group Cultural Differences on Cooperative and Competitive Behavior on a Group Task”, Academy of Management Journal, 34: 827–47.

  • De Giorgi, G., Pellizzari, M. & Redaelli, S. (2007), Be as Careful of the Books You Read as of The Company You Keep: Evidence on Peer Effects in Educational Choices, IZA, Discussion Paper No. 2833

  • Erikson, E. (1946), “Ego Development and Historical Change”, Psychoanalytic Study of the Child, 2: 359–96.

  • Granovetter, M. (1973), “The Strength of Weak Ties”, American Journal of Sociology, 78: 13 60-80.

  • Gurin, P. (1999), “Expert Report of Patricia Gurin”, The Michigan journal of Roll and Layout, 5(1):363-425

  • Gurin, P., Dey, E., Hurtado, S. & Gurin, G. (2002), “Diversity and Higher Education:Theory and Impact on Educational Outcomes”, Harvard Educational Review, 72(3): 330367.

  • Gurin, P. & Lopez, G. E. (2004), “The Benefits of Diversity in Education for Democratic Citizenship”, Journal of Social Issues, 60(1): 17-34.

  • Halpern, D. (1999), Social Capital: The New Golden Goose, London, Institute for Public Policy Research.

  • Hansen, Z., Owan, H. & Pan, J. (2006), The Impact of Group Diversity on Performance and Knowledge Spillover—An Experiment in a College Classroom (No. w12251). National Bureau of Economic Research.

  • Hanushek, E., Kain, J., Markman, J. & Rivkin, S. (2003), “Does Peer Ability Affect Student Achievement?” Journal of Applied Econometrics, 18(5): 527-44.

  • Healy, T. & Côté, S. (2001), The Well-Being of Nations: The Role of Human and Social Capital. Education and Skills, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development,

  • Paris Jackson, S. E. (1992), “Team Composition in Organizational Settings: Issues in Managing an Increasingly Diverse Workforce”, in S. Worchel, W. Wood & J. A. Simpson (Eds.), Group Processes and Productivity, Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

  • Jehn, K. A., Northcraft, G. B. & Neale, M. A. (1999), “Why Differences Make a Difference: A Field Study of Diversity, Conflict, and Performance in Workgroups”, Administrative Science Quarterly, 44: 741–63.

  • Van Knippenberg, D., De Dreu, C. K. & Homan, A. C. (2004), “Work Group Diversity and Group Performance: an Integrative Model and Research Agenda”, Journal of Applied Psychology, 89(6): 1008.

  • Kosorukoff, A. (2011), Social Network Analysis: Theory and Applications, Passmore, D. L. Pennsylvania State University, USA

  • Langer, E. J. (1978), “Rethinking The Role of Thought in Social Interaction”, New Directions in Attribution Research, 2(1): 35-58.

  • Lin, Xu. (2005), Peer Effects and Student Academic Achievement: An Application of Spatial Autoregressive Model with Group Unobservables, (Mimeo), Ohio State University.

  • Milem, B. J. F., Chang, M. J. & Antonio, A. L. (2005). Making Diversity Work on Campus/ : A Research-Based Perspective, Washington, DC: Association of American Colleges and Universities.

  • 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 (2): 402–33.

  • Murnighan, J. K. & Conlon, D. E. (1991), “The Dynamics of Intense Work Groups: A Study of British String Quartets”, Administrative Science Quarterly, 36: 165–86.

  • Pelled, L. H. (1996), “Demographic Diversity, Conflict, and Work Group Outcomes: an Intervening rocess Theory”, Organization Science, 7 (6): 615–31.

  • Piaget, J. (1971), “The Theory of Stages in Cognitive Development”, in D. R. Green, M. P. Ford & G. B. Flamer (Eds.), Measurement and Piaget , New York, McGraw-Hill.

  • Piaget, J. (1985), The Equilibration of Cognitive Structures: The Central Problem of Intellectual Development, University of Chicago Press.

  • Ruble, T. L. & Stout, D. E. (1994), A Critical Assessment of Entry-Level Accountants.Cognitive Abilities, ERIC Document# ED, 377, 221.

  • Sacerdote, B. (2001), “Peer Effects with Random Assign men t: R esul t s for Da rmo u t h Rommmates”, Quarterly Journal of Economics, 116(2): 681-704.

  • Sessa, V. I. & Jackson, S. E. (1995), “Diversity in Decision-making Teams: All Differences Ar e No t Cre at ed E qu a l ” , i n M. M.

  • Chemers, S. Oskamp & M. A. Costanzo (Eds.), Diversity in Organizations: New Perspectives For a Changing Workplace, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

  • Simons, T., Pelled, L. H. & Smith, K. A. (1999), “Making Use of Difference: Diversity, Debate, and Decision Comprehensiveness in Top Management Teams”, Academy of Management Journal, 42: 662–74.

  • Tajfel, H. & Turner, J. (1986), “The Social Identity of Intergroup Behavior”, in W. A. S. Worchel (Ed.), Psychology and Intergroup Relations, Chicago, Nelson-Hall.

  • Triandis, H. C. (1994), “Cross-cultural Industrial and Organizational Psychology”, in H. C. Triandis, M.D. Dunnette & L. M. Hough (Eds.), Handbook of Industrial and Organizational

  • Psychology, Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press

  • Tsui, A. S., Egan, T. D. & O’Reilly, C. A. (1992), “Being Different: Relational Demography and Organizational Attachment”, Administrative Science Quarterly, 37: 549–79.

  • Turner, J. C., Hogg, M. A., Oakes, P. J., Reicher, S. D. & Wetherell, M. S. (1987), Rediscovering The Social Group: A Self-categorization Theory, Oxford, United Kingdom: Blackwell

  • Wasserman, S. & Faust, K. (1994), Social Network Analysis, Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press.

  • Williams, K. Y. & O’Reilly III, C. A. (1998), Demography and Diversity in Organizations: A Review of 40 Years of Research, in B M Staw and L L Cummings (Eds), Research in Organizational Behavior, Vol. 20, Jai Pres, Connecticut.

  • Woolcock, M. (2001), “The Place of Social Capital in Understanding Social and Economic Outcomes”, Canadian Journal of Policy Research, 2(1): 11-17.

  • Zimmerman, D. (2003), “Peer Effects in Academic Outcomes: Evidence from a Natural Experiment”, Review of Economics and Statistics, 85(1): 9-23.


Abstract Views: 96

PDF Views: 0




  • Impact of Diversity in Networks on Academic Performance of Management Students

Abstract Views: 96  |  PDF Views: 0

Authors

Shalini
Doctoral Student - Human Resource Management, Indian Institute of Management Culcutta, India

Abstract


Scholars have highlighted the significance of a diverse group on i ndivi dual ’s pe rformance and have argued in favor of diversity within a group, institution or organization. However, the impact of diversity within one’s networks has not bee n ex pl ored. Eve n within a diverse group, a student might approach someone coming from similar background. The present study attempted to explore, in the context of Indian management education, how does diversity within one’s networks impacts student’s academic performance. For the study, 107 students from one of the toptier and oldest institutes of management in India were selected. Their network, and diversity within their networks was mapped and calculated. The findings hinted that diversity within networks might not always result in a positive outcome.

References