Team dynamics and team empowerment in health care organizations

BACKGROUND: Despite the growing pervasiveness of team-based job designs in health care organizations, there is a degree of uncertainty and ambiguity about the process through which teams affect outcomes. PURPOSE: This research adds to our understanding of the process by which team dynamics affects team member attitudes. It investigates the role of team empowerment as a mediator in the relationships between team context, team atmosphere, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment. METHODOLOGY: Multiple regression analysis is used to test for the mediating effect of team empowerment in the relationships that team context and team atmosphere have with job satisfaction and organizational commitment. FINDINGS: Team empowerment mediates the relationships of team context and team atmosphere with job satisfaction and organizational commitment. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Although adopting team-based job designs is an important first step, attention must also be paid to the context and atmosphere of such teams. Better outcomes will be achieved when team members perceive a supportive team atmosphere and an empowering team context with clear and jointly developed goals, an appropriate mix of skills and expertise, and rewards linked to team performance.