Relational demography in organizations: an assessment of the explored and overlooked

Abstract

PurposeThe study aims to present an in-depth review of previous research on relational demography (individual–team dissimilarity) over the past 30 years. In doing so, the authors highlighted the main theoretical underpinnings, teased out the common methodological approaches and identified the major mediating processes and contingency factors that influence relational demography's effect on individual outcomes in teams.Design/methodology/approachThe authors searched and examined eight databases (ABI/INFORM Complete, ProQuest, EBSCO, Web of Science, JSTOR, PsycARTICLES, PsycINFO and Science Direct) and distilled 106 studies from 34 journals. The authors synthesized and analyzed this body of work to identify extant patterns and themes in relational demography.FindingsThe findings reveal that the majority of theories used are categorized into three segments. The antecedents used are mainly surface- and deep-level variables, while the outcomes are classified into personal- and work-related constructs. For research testing, Euclidean distance and Blau's index are primarily utilized as heterogeneity measures, while various forms of regression are used as the analytical tool for hypotheses testing.Originality/valueExtant literature reviews on relational demography are scant. This study provides an extensive synthesis and analysis of the studies in the area over the past 30 years and offers an agenda that can motivate future research.