The effects of cultural intelligence on performance in multicultural teams

This study investigates the relative performance changes of multicultural teams (MCTs) over time, as well as the relationship between cultural intelligence (CQ) and performance in MCTs. More specifically, we argue that MCTs' CQ alleviates the adverse effect of cultural diversity on team performance, thereby demonstrating the importance of CQ for multicultural teams. Using data from 73 project groups comprising 327 members, the results have demonstrated that the degree of cultural diversity on MCTs influences team performance over time, and that those teams with higher levels of CQ tend to gradually exhibit higher rates of performance improvement. In addition, the results indicate that CQ moderates the relationship between cultural diversity and team performance.