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 in dividuals for team positions. Data are reported from three studies tha t examined determinants of team performance-related assertiveness. Fir st, data from 149 college students demonstrated that assertiveness con sists of multiple dimensions which were not all related to performance in a team decision-making task. Second, data obtained from 225 busine ss 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 asse rtiveness has a significant skill component. Whereas both attitudinall y focused and skill-based training improved attitudes toward team memb er assertiveness, practice and feedback were essential to producing be havioral effects. Implications for selection and team training are dis cussed.