Colbert, E and Aboagye-Nimo, E (2021) The role of prosody and personality type on effective team formation. In: Scott, L and Neilson, C J (eds.) Proceedings of 37th Annual ARCOM Conference, 6-7 September 2021, Online Event, UK.
Abstract
Effective communication has always remained one of the most crucial features of every successful project. Misinterpretation of instructions within large-scale projects can cost millions, not just in reworks, but also through compounded unnecessary delays in re-communicating messages among all teams in the supply chain. This paper discusses prosody and personality types and their roles within communication. Poor team formation has been noted to have a strong correlation with unsuccessful project communication. Prosody has an impact the exchange of information, but it is not widely researched or applied within the wider construction sector. The reviewed literature offers an insight into the effects that prosody and personality types have on communication and team cohesion. A mixed methods methodology is adopted in this study. Interviews with senior project and construction managers were conducted to test the importance of correct team formation. Utilising the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and investigating the role that prosody must play in interpretation of communication, data from a quantitative pilot study highlights the need to understand the personalities behind the teams in advance in order to deliver a successful project and effective team. Data analysis shows the majority of those surveyed within the engineering discipline have Extraversion (E - 77%) and Judging (J - 77%) characteristics, yet this is the least common type among general population. The research offers discussion on finding unity between team formation and successful project communication.
| Item Type: | Conference Paper (Paper) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | communication; myers-briggs; prosody; team-formation |
| Index terms: | personality, rework, cohesion, data analysis, mixed method, project communication, interview, construction sector, construction manager, population, methodology |
| Subjects: | operations management, data analysis and analytics, data collection methods, profession, demography, behavioral psychology, industry analysis, research methods, structural engineering, professional development |
| Topics: | Urban Studies, Research Practice, Project Management, Information Management, Engineering Principles, Roles and Professions |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here