Distributed leadership,
knowledge and information
management and team
performance in Chinese
and Western groups

Iles, PA; Feng, Y

Abstract

Purpose – More studies are beginning to support the role of distributed, as opposed to solo,
leadership in team performance, but distributed leadership (DL) has not always been linked to higher
performance. It may need to be co-ordinated, rather than misaligned or fragmented, and may be most
effective in teams performing interdependent tasks. DL has not often been linked to team information
processing, however; viewing leadership as involving information management, it is proposed that DL
may be linked to higher levels of information exchange and information integration, of both shared
and unshared information. A series of research propositions are then developed with the purpose of
exploring further the role of DL in team decision making, especially in terms of information exchange
and information integration processes in Chinese and Western groups.
Design/methodology/approach – The paper derives a number of research propositions from the
literature on DL and information processing and applies them to decision making by Chinese and
Western teams.
Findings – The paper presents a series of propositions on the factors affecting the effectiveness of
DL and possible differences between Chinese and Western teams.
Originality/value – The paper presents a series of propositions about DL and relates the literature
on DL to the literature on information processing in an original way.

Citation

and Western groups. Journal of Technology Management in China, 6(1), 26-42. https://doi.org/10.1108/17468771111105640

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Jan 1, 2011
• Deposit Date: Oct 5, 2011
• Journal: Journal of Technology Management in China
• Print ISSN: 1746-8779
• Publisher: Emerald
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 6
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 26-42
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/17468771111105640
• Publisher URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/17468771111105640