BELBIN MRVSR AComprehensiveReview Mar2010

Belbin Associates 2009

BELBIN

Method,Reliability&Validity,Statistics&Research:AComprehensiveReviewofBelbinTeamRoles

Belbin Associates 2009

ContentsIntroductionMeasuringBehaviour

1 ConstructionoftheBTRSPI 3 IstheBTRSPIanipsativetest? 4 AdministrationandScoringoftheBTRSPI 6 Whyuseeinterplace? 6 TheSpecialistRole 6 ObserverAssessments 7 Norming 8 TeamRoleAdvice 8 DescriptionoftheNineTeamRoles 9 Reliability 11 Testretestreliability 11 Internalconsistency 11 Validity 13 Facevalidity 13 Constructvalidity 13 Convergentvalidity 13 Discriminantvalidity 14 Concordantvalidity 14 TheBTRSPIandothermeasures 15 Criterionvalidity 15 Belbininpractice 16 ObserverAssessments 16 Jobprofiling 17 Belbininindustry 19 Testing,BiasandFairness 20 BelbinandGender 20 BelbinandEthnicOrigin 21 BelbinandAge 21 BelbinandManagement 22 FurtherReading 23 BooksfromBelbin 23 OthertitlesfromBelbin 23 ResearchStudies 24 RecommendedArticles 25 OtherArticles 26

1BelbinAssociates2009

IntroductionMeasuringBehaviourThe Belbin Team Role SelfPerception Inventory (BTRSPI)was designed tomeasure behavioural characteristicswhichindividualsdisplaywhenworkinginteams.BelbinTeamRoleTheorywasdevisedasaresultofthestudiesconducted by Meredith Belbin in the 1970s. For more details of this initial research, please visit the Belbinwebsite.SincetheBTRSPImeasuresbehaviourratherthanpersonality,itisnotconsideredtobeapsychometrictest(thosewhich measure attributes of personality). Rather, personality is one of many factors which can influencebehaviour. Other factors include internalisedvaluesandmotivations,and theexternalworkingenvironmentorFieldConstraints:

Whilst most personality traits are acknowledged to be fairly constant, behaviour can change more readily,adapting to changes in any of those factors which influence it. As a result, Belbin expects that Team Rolepreferencesmightchangeovertime.Whilstitisunlikelythatanindividualsprofilewillchangedramaticallyorbereversedaltogether,somealterationsareexpected,inlinewithachangeofjobroleorworkenvironment,orasaresultofamajorlifechange.The BTRSPI measures behaviour because Belbin believes that this provides the most useful and verifiableinformationregardingan individualtoarecruiter,managerorconsultant,aswellastothe individualconcerned.Whilstitcouldbearguedthatonlytheindividualhimselfknowshisownpersonality,behaviourisobservableandcanbeinterpretedandusedtopredictfuturereactionsandconduct.Thedifficultywhenmeasuringpersonalityaloneisthattheremaybealargediscrepancybetweenpersonalityandbehaviour.Whilstanindividualmaypurporttobeanextravert,thatpersonsbehaviourintheworkplacemayleantowardsintroversion.Theindividualsselfperceptionofextraversionmayindicatelimitedselfawarenessormayreflectapersonalitytraittheindividualwishestopossess.Itisarguablethatidentifyingcertainpersonalitytraitsdoesnotdirectlyhelpthemanagerconcernedwithrecruitmentorpromotion.Inthecaseofmanypsychometrictests,managersexpendmuchenergyunderstandingthepsychometricdimensionsortraits,ratherthanapplyingtheknowledgetoimproveperformance.Ratherthanprovidinginformationregardingindividualpersonalitytraits,theBTRSPIgaugesbehaviourinordertoidentify groupings or clusters (Team Roles) which characterise an individuals behavioural contribution to theworkplace. Forexample,youmight findaquestion inapersonality testalong the linesof:When Ivemadeadecision about something, I still keepwonderingwhether its right orwrong. Here, the focus is on how the


individualthinksandfeels. Bycontrast,theBTRSPIasksquestions like:Icanbereliedupontofinishanytask Iundertake,focusingonpracticalcontributionsanindividualmightmake.Aswell as selfreporting,whereby an individual identifies behaviours he believes he exhibits, the BTRSPI usesObserverAssessments (OA) tosubstantiateor refute theseclaimswith theperceptionsofcolleagues,managersandothercoworkers,to formamoreroundedviewofthe individualscontribution. Aritzeta,Swailes&Seniorwrite:

Thedynamicconfigurationofteamrolesmeasuredbythe [B]TRSPIandtherelativestabilityoftraitsmeasuredbypersonalityquestionnaires leadstotheconclusionthattraitsmeasuredbythe latteraredifferent fromthosemeasuredbythe [B]TRSPI. Thus,both instrumentsmaybetappingdifferentbutcomplementaryconstructs.~Aritzeta,Swailes&Senior,20071

Many individuals and organisations are concerned that the introduction of psychometric tests might lead topigeonholingorlabellingofindividuals.WithBelbinTeamRoles,therelationshipbetweenanindividualandtheTeamRolestheyexhibitisafarmorecomplexone.AnindividualdoesnothaveoneTeamRole,butacombinationofpreferred,manageableand leastpreferred roles. Thedistributionand interrelationof these rolesacrossanindividualsprofilehaveagreat influenceonthewaytheroleswillbeplayedout inpracticeandexperiencedbyothers.Whilstanindividualmayclaimtopreferorenjoyaparticularrole,itdoesnotnecessarilymeanthattheycan or should play only this role. The theory of Team Roles is concernedwith acknowledging strengths andweaknesses,butalsowithcultivatingstrengthstobecomingamodel,strongexampleofagivenTeamRoletype.

1BelbinsTeamRoleModel:Development,ValidityandApplicationsforTeamBuilding(Aritzeta,Swailes&Senior,2007),p.110.


ConstructionoftheBTRSPITheBTRSPIisabehaviouraltestdesignedforuseinorganisationalandworksettings.TheBTRSPIwasformulatedbyMeredithBelbin inthe1980sfollowingonfromhisresearchatHenleyManagementCollegeand inceptionofTeamRoleTheory.TheBTRSPImeasuresninedimensionsorTeamRolesandhasone scale knownasDroppedPoints (DR),whichmeasures claims about oneself rather than valid Team Role contributions. The inventory consists of sevensections,witheachsectioncontainingaheadingandtenstatements,one itemperTeamRoleanda tenth itemrepresentingDR.Theheadingsgiveaworkbasedscenarioorsituationwithwhichthe individualcan identify. This is intendedtoanchorthebehavioursdescribed ina familiarworkcontextandtoencouragecandidatestoreflectanddrawonexamplesfromtheirownexperiences.WhencompletingtheBTRSPI,candidatesareaskedtodistributetenmarksintotalpersectionoftheinventory.Ifa candidate identifies equally with only two statements, 5 points should be allocated to each of the twostatements.Iffourofthestatementsarerelevant,buttwomoresothantheothertwo,theallocationofpointsmightbe3,3,2and2,asshownbelow:

Thisisthenrepeatedforeachsectionoftheinventory.Candidatesmayonlyallocatemarksinwholenumbersandareaskedtoavoideitherextreme(allocatingall10markstoonestatementor1marktoeach)wherepossible.


ConstructionoftheBTRSPIIstheBTRSPIanipsativetest?TheBTRSPIisdesignedtoascertainasmuchinformationaspossibleaboutanindividualsTeamRolepreferences,whilstkeeping the inventorymanageable in termsof item length, inventory lengthandanswering style. Manypsychometrictestssuchasthe16PFandOPQrequiretherespondenttoevaluatearound200itemsusingaLikertscale(e.g.tickinganansweralongaspectrumfromStronglyagreetoStronglydisagree,usuallywithaneutraloptionofDontknoworNotsure).Incontrast,theBTRSPIaskstherespondenttoconsideritemswithineachsection in relation toeachotherand toprioritisesomeaboveothers. Asa result, thequestionnaire takesonlybetween15and20minutestocomplete,lesstimethanmanypsychometricevaluations.SincethetotalscoreachievedintheBTRSPIisalwaysconstant,itisanipsativemeasureoverall.Thismeansthatarespondent must express a relative preference between two or more statements measuring differentcharacteristics,thuscreatingadegreeofinterdependencebetweenthecharacteristicsbeingmeasured.However,sincetheitemsaredispersedinthe7sectionssuchthatthereisoneitemforeachroleineachsection,the scores given to items foranyTeamRolearenot fully ipsative, since theydonot sum toa constant value.Whilst thescores for items in thesamescaleare independentofeachother, theyarepartlydependenton thescoresgiventootherscales.Inotherwords,theBTRSPIisipsativewithinitssections(sincescoresalwayssumto10)butnotbetweenitssections.SomeearlyresearchstudiescriticisedthescoringstyleoftheBTRSPI,suggestingthat itforcedchoicebetweenstatements. In1993,MeredithBelbindefended the inventory, claiming that some restrictionof choice [was]operationallydesirablesinceselfratingonindependentscalesyieldslittleofvalueinindustrialandoccupationalsettings(seediscussionabove).In their1998 research, Sommerville&Dalziel converted theBTRSPI to a Likerttype scalequestionnaire. Theyfoundthat73%ofparticipantshadthesameTeamRoleacrossbothversionsofthetest,indicatingthatthereisnosignificantdifferenceinthepredictionofTeamRolesbetweenthetwoversions.2In1993,MeredithBelbinmaintainedthatLikerttypescalescausedmorefrustrationamongcandidatesinindustryand later, in research conducted in2004,Aritzeta, Swailes&McIntyreBhattypointout that Likerttype scalesbringtheirownsetofproblems:

There is a strong controversy in the literature about the ipsative scoring of constructs, and suchdiscussionwhileveryinterestingisstillfarfromclear.Ipsativedataisnotfreefromcriticismasneitherarenormativedata[sic].Likerttypescalesarenotfreefromimportantthreatsascentraltendencybias,acquiescence, socialdesirability and falsificationof responseswhichmaybemuch larger from thesetypesofscalesthanforipsativescales.~Aritzeta,Swailes&McIntyreBhatty,20043

2Project teambuilding theapplicabilityofBelbins team role selfperception inventory (Sommerville&Dalziel,1998),pp.166167.3FurtherEvidenceonthevalidityoftheBelbinTeamRoleSelfPerceptionInventoryandtheObserversAssessmentSheet(Aritzeta,Swailes&McIntyreBhatty,2004),p.8.


Arguably,aLikerttypescalealso forceschoicebyaskingcandidates tochoose theneutral response ifnootherapplies. Forexample, ifabipartitestatement ispresented,withthecandidateagreeingtoonepartofthe itemanddisagreeingwith theother,aneutral response could reflect thepoorwordingof the item rather than thecandidatestrueresponse.Additionally,theLikerttypescaleassumesthatthefigurativedistanceinpreferencebetweenStronglyagreeandAgreeisthesameasthatbetweenAgreeandtheneutralresponseorbetweenDisagreeandStronglydisagree. This isanassumptionwhichaidscalculationandanalysis,butagain, isnotreflectiveoftrueresponse.Havingundertakencomprehensive statisticaland factoranalysisondata frommore than5000 candidateswhohave completed theBTRSPI,Swailes&Aritzeta conclude that the scoring systemof theBTRSPIhasnoadverseeffectonitsconstructvalidityandthatlevelsofinterdependencyarelow(pleaseseetheValiditysectionbelowfor further discussion).4 Since the BTRSPIs current format confers no statistical disadvantage and confersconsiderableadvantagesfromtheviewpointofthecandidate,Belbinhaschosentoretaintheformat.

4ScalePropertiesoftheTeamRoleSelfPerceptionInventory(Swailes&Aritzeta,2006),p.10.


AdministratingandScoringoftheBTRSPITheBTRSPIisavailablefromBelbinAssociatesathttp://www.belbin.com.Therearealsoanumberofconsultantsand distributors who are licensed to resell Belbin internationally in English and other languages. Whilst theinventoryisreadilyavailableonline,aneinterplacesystemisrequiredtoscoretheinventory,processthedataandproduceBelbinreports.Inhisbook,ManagementTeams:WhyTheySucceedorFail, firstpublished in1981,MeredithBelbin includedaselfscoringBTRSPIdesignedtoprovidetheindividualreaderwithaquickfixindicatorofwhattheirBelbinTeamRolesmightbe. As further researchwasconducted, this inventorywasshown tobe inadequate indeterminingTeam Roles and the einterplace system was developed to handle the norming, data analysis and complexalgorithmswhicharise fromdifferent combinationsof response to theBTRSPI. Rather thanproviding simplyarankedorderofroles,theeinterplacesoftwareproducesafullfeedbackreport, integrating informationgleanedfromboththeSelfPerceptionInventoryandObserverAssessments.BelbinAssociates owns the copyright for the SelfPerception Inventory included inManagement Teams anddoes not allow this questionnaire to be reproduced in any form. Individuals may purchase the book andcompletetheselfscoringversionoftheBTRSPIfortheirownpersonaldevelopment,butanycopyingorwiderusage is an infringement of copyright and will be prosecuted. For more information, please visithttp://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=7.Whyuseeinterplace?The selfscoring questionnaire is now obsolete and is not a reliable way of determining Team Roles. ManyresearchstudieshavesuggestedthateinterplaceprovidesamuchmorereliableandvalidmethodofestablishingTeamRoles.5Moreover,theoldselfscoringmethoddoesnotincludetheninthroleofSpecialist,lacksthebalanceofobserver input, isnotproperlynormedandmost importantly,doesnotofferanyTeamRoleadvice. Thesepointsareoutlinedinmoredetailbelow.TheSpecialistroleMeredithBelbinsoriginalresearch inthe1970s identifiedeightTeamRoles. Afterthe initialresearchhadbeencompleted,aninthTeamRole,Specialistemerged.ThisrolewasdiscoveredonlyaftertheHenleyexperimentshadbeenconcluded.Sincethebusinessgamehadbeenconstructedtosetallparticipantsonalevelplayingfieldintermsofknowledgeandexpertise,Specialistbehaviourscouldnotemerge.Whilstthispremisewasusefulforthepurposesoftheexperiment,itisnotrepresentativeofreallife.AllinformationregardingthecontributionandshortcomingsoftheSpecialisthasbeengleanedfromlaterexperiencesinthepracticalapplicationofthetheoryinindustry.5PleaseseetheFurtherReadingsectionformoredetailsonresearchconductedusingtheeinterplacesystem.


ObserverAssessmentsBelbin strongly recommends the use ofObserverAssessments orOA (our own integrated form of 360degreefeedback) to qualify the individuals selfperception. Whilst many psychometric tests rely entirely on selfreporting,Belbinpointstothelimitationsofthisapproach.Anindividualmayhavelittleselfawareness,especiallyifheorshehasnotbeenworkingforverylong.MeredithBelbinarguesthattheneedforsuchcorroborationarosefromademandforamorerobustwayofassessingthepotentialTeamRolecontributionofindividuals:

Linemanagerswere usuallywary of using selfreportingmeasureswhen reaching crucial decisionsaboutpeople.Thatreservationisseldomconnectedwithtechnicalissuesoftestconstructionbutmorewiththerecognitionthatpeoplearesubjectto illusionsabouttheselfandarealsotemptedtodistorttheir responsesonce theybelieve that theiranswersaffect jobandcareerprospects. Linemanagersplaceagreateremphasisonobservationsofothers,believingthatsuchmaterialhasgreatervalidity,intermsofeffectivedecisionmaking,providingitisproperlygathered. ~MeredithBelbin,19936

As well as validating an individuals selfperception with observations of realworld behaviour, ObserverAssessmentsprovide learningandpersonaldevelopmentopportunities. Forexample,where individuals indicatedifferent Team Role preferences than are identified by their team, discussion may arise as to whether theindividualinquestionisabletoachievefullpotentialorisaskedtoplayotherrolesforthebenefitoftheteam.FormoreinformationontheuseofObserverAssessments,pleaseviewtheCriterionValiditysectionbelow.

6 A reply to the Belbin TeamRole SelfPerception Inventory by Furnham, Steele and Pendleton (Belbin, 1993),JournalofOccupationalandOrganizationalPsychology(1993),66,p.259.


NormingBelbin recognises thatdifferentgroupsandculturesmayproducedifferentTeamRolebalances. SinceBelbin issoldandusedinternationally,theBelbineinterplacesoftwaresystemmakesprovisionforthis.Individualusersofthesoftwarecancreate theirownnorms foraparticularorganisationorotherdefinedgroup,orcanchoose torefertoUKnorms,ifpreferred.InhisarticleonBelbinandculture,ChrisMorisonwrites:

Withoutnorming,itwouldbeimpossibletocomparescoresbetweenroles.Withoutthatcomparison,theselectionofnatural,managedandavoidedroleswouldbeimpossible.Secondly,normingfiltersoutculturalimpacts.Thismakestheroleselectionrelativetothenormsused.

~ChrisMorison,20087TeamRoleAdviceBelbin einterplace uses the data gained from the BTRSPI to produce a full feedback report, interpreting theindividualsTeamRolepreferencesintextualandgraphicalforms.ThefourpageSelfPerceptionreportincludes:

SelfPerceptionTeamRoleProfile CounsellingReport CharacterProfile PersonalWorkStyle

With the addition ofObserver Assessments, an extended eightpage report analysing individual and observerfeedback can be provided. Formore information and to view sample Belbin Team Role reports, please visithttp://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=10.7AnInvestigationofBelbinTeamRolesasaMeasureofBusinessCulture(ChrisMorison,2008),p.32.


DescriptionoftheNineTeamRolesThe nine Belbin Team Roles are shown below, along with the strengths and allowable weaknesses for theparticularrole.AccordingtoBelbinTeamRoletheory,aseachTeamRolemakesanindividualcontributiontotheteam,soeachTeamRolehasanallowableweaknesswhichistheflipsideofthestrength.

FormoreinformationonBelbinTeamRoletheory,pleasevisithttp://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=8.


DescriptionoftheNineTeamRolesTeamRolesareclustersofbehaviour, rather than individual traitsorcharacteristics. Asmentionedabove, it isenvisagedthatacandidatewillhavemorethanonepreferredTeamRole.IntheSelfPerceptionTeamRoleProfile,anindividualsTeamRolesareanalysedinthreecategories:

PreferredRolesthoseroleswhichtheindividualiscomfortableplayingandwhichcomenaturally. ManageableRoles those roleswhich an individual can play if required for the benefitof the team.

Thesemaybecultivatedtobroadentheindividualsteamworkingexperience. LeastPreferredRolesthoseroleswhichtheindividualdoesnotnaturallyorcomfortablyassume. Itis

generally recommended that the individual avoids contributing in these areas, lest the pitfalls of thebehaviouroutweighthestrengths.

ThenineTeamRolesmayalsobecategorisedasAction,SocialandThinkingroles:

ActionCompleterFinisher(CF);Implementer(IMP);Shaper(SH) SocialCoordinator(CO);ResourceInvestigator(RI);Teamworker(TW) ThinkingMonitorEvaluator(ME);Plant(PL);Specialist(SP)

Asmentioned above,no individual TeamRole or characteristic shouldbe considered in isolation. Rather, thespecific combination and interaction of an individuals Team Roles along with observer input and style ofresponse to theBTRSPIhelp to shapeand inform theTeamRoleprofile,with the intricate interplayofTeamRoleshandledbytheBelbineinterplacesoftwaresystem.WhilstTeamRolesarenotlikelytochangedramatically,individualswhoarenewtoajobortotheworldofworkmaydiscovermorefluctuationintheirpreferencesthanthosewhohavebeenworkingformuchlonger.Someindividualsmayfindthatonlytwoorthreerolescomeintoplay,whilstothersmayfindthatthevarietyoftheirjoboraJackofalltradesdispositioncallsuponfourorfivedifferentroles,whichcanbeplayedasthesituationdemands.


ReliabilityInpsychometric testing,a reliable test isonewhichwillproduceconsistent resultswhen the same individual istestedondifferentoccasions (often referred toas testretest reliability). Often,psychologistsandstatisticiansanalysetheinternalconsistencyofatesttoverifythatdifferentpartsofatestareallmeasuringthesamequalityor trait (in this case, theyaremeasuring internal consistency). Whenevaluatinga test, reliability is generallymeasuredbeforevalidity,sincethereliabilityofatestplacesanupperlimitonitsvalidityinotherwords,atestcannotmeasurewhatitpurportstomeasureunlessitisstableandconsistentinitsmeasurement.TestretestreliabilityAsdiscussedinMeasuringBehaviourabove,Belbinisnotapsychometrictest,sinceitmeasuresbehaviourratherthanpersonality. Whilstpersonalitymay remain fairlyconsistent,wewouldexpectbehaviour tochange,alongwithachangeinjobrole,forexample.Indeed,itisdesirablethatanindividualsshouldadapttosuitthedemandsof the job. Although it is unusual for a TeamRole profile to become entirely reversed, it is highly likely thatpreferredandmanageablerolesmaymovearoundwithinanindividualsprofileduringhisorhercareer.InternalconsistencyInternalconsistencyisalsoknownasscalehomogeneity,inotherwords,theabilityofitemsinascaletomeasurethesameconstructortrait.BelbinmeasuresnineTeamRoles,whichareclustersorconstellationsofbehaviouralcharacteristics,ratherthanindividualtraits.Asaresult,BelbindoesnotrepeatitemsbutratherlookstoidentifystrataofdifferentTeamRolebehavioursdisplayedbyanindividual.SinceBelbindiffersfrompsychometrictests inboth itsunderlyingtheoryand itsformatandscoringmechanism,measuring itsreliabilityhaspresentedachallengetoresearchersovertheyears. Themostcommonmeasureofinternalconsistency isCronbachsAlpha (),which,whenappliedtotheBTRSPIduringearlyresearch,producedhighly variable results. In their research papers, The Reliability of the (Belbin) Team Role SelfPerceptionInventory:Cronbachsalphaand ipsativescales8andUsesandAbusesofReliabilityEstimates:TheCaseoftheBelbinTRSPI9,StephenSwailesandTimMcIntyreBhattyexploredlimitationstoCronbachsalphaingeneralandexplainedwhyexistingmeasuresofreliabilitywereinadequatetoevaluatetheBTRSPI.Firstly,theresearcherspointoutagenericlimitationofCronbachsalpha(thatsimplyincreasingthelengthoftheinventory(i.e.thenumberofitems)canincrease.Also,interitemcorrelations(thelinkbetweenitems)canremain low, but can achieve a high value, so long as they are consistently low. As regards the BTRSPI inparticular, it isneither fully ipsativenornonipsative,sowhilst the totalscoreachieved isalways thesame, thescoreforeachTeamRolecanvary.Secondly,respondentsdonotallocateavaluetoeveryitemintheinventory.In thepast, researchershaveassigned zero toall itemswithouta response, rather thanassigninganull value,thereby contaminating the results. Researchershavealsomadeuseof theobsolete selfscoringversionof theinventoryandhaveusedsmallorinappropriatesamplesizeswhenanalysingdataanddrawingconclusions.8 The Reliability of the (Belbin) Team Role SelfPerception Inventory: Cronbachs alpha and ipsative scales(McIntyreBhatty&Swailes,2000).9UsesandAbusesofReliabilityEstimates:TheCaseoftheBelbinTRSPI(Swailes&McIntyreBhatty,2001).


Having recognised these limitations to Cronbachs Alpha and its applications to the BTRSPI, Swailes et al.formulatedandproposedanewmeasureof reliability, IR,whichoffersaweightedmeanofaverage interitemcorrelationscores. Usinga largedatasetofrespondents,theycalculatedbycontaminatingnullresponseswithzeros,asearlier researchershaddone, for the sakeof comparison. Next, they choseonly those responses forwhicheveryTeamRole receiveda scoreacross the7 sectionsof the inventory, soas toavoid theproblemofassigning values of zero to null responses. was calculated again, without contamination of null and usingweightedinteritemcorrelation.TheresultsareshowninTable1below:Table1

TeamRoles

TeamRole CF CO IMP ME PL RI SH SP TWCronbach(withzeros) .46 .41 .23 .40 .54 .44 .66 .48 .53

Cronbach(7scoreditems) .67 .79 .56 .60 .72 .78 .68 .65 .76n(numberofrespondents)forwith(7scoreditems) 161 133 358 124 86 126 482 84 197

ForCronbachwithzeros,n=5003A scoreof0.6or above is considered goodor acceptable. Whilst traditional useofCronbachsshowspoorresults for the BTRSPI, a vast improvement is found for using Swailes et al.s new formula for calculatingreliability. Thisstudyhelpstoexplainwhyearlierresearchproducedpoorresults fortheBTRSPIsreliability. Insummary,earlierstudiesmadeerroneoususeofinrelationtotheBTRSPI,usedmuchsmallerandinappropriatesamplesandcontaminateddatabyassigningzerostonullresponses.

Usingweighted interitem correlation to calculate reliability via CronbachsAlpha (),Belbin TeamRolesasmeasuredbytheBTRSPIshowgoodoracceptablereliabilityoverall.


ValidityAtestissaidtobevalidifitmeasureswhatitclaimstomeasure.Therearedifferentkindsofvalidity:facevalidity,constructvalidityandcriterionvalidity.TheseareexploredbelowinrelationtotheBTRSPI.FacevalidityFacevalidityconcernstheappearanceofthetest.Ifthetestappearstobemeasuringappropriatelyandcorrectly,thenrespondentsaremoreinclinedtogivethetesttheirfullattentionandanswerithonestlyandopenly.Intheir1996 study, Balderson & Broderick state that the BTRSPI has very high face validity and comment on theacceptabilityofthemeasuresorTeamRolesparticularlyusingtheInterplacesystemexpertreports.10ConstructvalidityConstruct validity assesses whether the characteristic which a test is actually measuring is meaningful andconsistentwithwhatthetestisintendedtomeasureoverall.Convergentvalidityisconcernedwithwhetheratestissimilartothosetowhich itshouldtheoreticallybesimilar. Discriminantvalidity istheextenttowhichagivenscalecanbedistinguishedfromotherscaleswhicharemeasuringdifferentconceptsortraits.Concordantvalidityhastodowiththelevelofagreement(orconcordance)betweenonetestandanother,inthisinstance,theBTRSPIandObserverAssessment(OA).MuchresearchhasbeenconductedintotheconstructvalidityoftheBTRSPI.AcomprehensiveoverviewofthesestudiesisprovidedinapaperbyAritzeta,Swailes&McIntyreBhatty.11ConvergentvalidityIntheir2007paper,Aritzetaetal.commentthattheTeamRolemodelhasacceptableconvergentvalidity. Theyexplain that previous empirical studies which have found less favourable results have fallen victim to effectscausedbysmallorinappropriatesamplesizes.Theywrite:

[This] leads us to conclude that the team role model has acceptable convergent validity. Factorstructures for theTRSPIare coherent in its ipsativeandnormative formsaswellaswithpersonalitymeasures. ~Aritzeta,Swailes&McIntyreBhatty,200412

10BehaviourinTeams:ExploringOccupationalandGenderDifferences(Balderson&Broderick,1996),p.33.11FurtherEvidenceontheValidityoftheBelbinTeamRoleSelfPerceptionInventoryandtheObserversAssessmentSheet(Aritzeta,Swailes&McIntyreBhatty,2004),pp.36.12BelbinsTeamRoleModel:Development,ValidityandApplicationsforTeamBuilding(Aritzeta,Swailes&Senior,2007),p.111.


DiscriminantvalidityFisher,Hunter&Macrossons2001paperprovidedoverall support fordiscriminant validity in theBTRSPI. TheresearcherswerehighlysuccessfulintheirpredictionofthefrequencyofoccurrenceofvariousTeamRolessolelyfromBelbinconstructsandstatedthatthisaddedweighttoclaimsofconstructvalidityfortheBTRSPI.13ConcordantvalidityIn their 2004 paper, Aritzeta, Swailes & McIntyreBhatty found that the Observer Assessment (OA) showedconcordantvaliditysince,outof3351observations,66.4%showedsignificantTeamRoleagreementbetweenobservers. When analysing the BTRSPI alongside the OA, 75% of the correlations could be considered frommoderatetostrong.Whilstthesefindingsareusefulandpositive,itisimportanttorecognisethat,owingtothenatureofBelbinTeamRoletheory,itispossiblethatobserversmightidentifyverydifferentbehavioursinthesameindividual.Individualprofiles canbe regarded as coherent, compatible,discordantor confused,dependingon the level and typeofagreementbetweenselfperceptionandobserverassessments.Incaseswhereselfperceptiondiffersgreatlyfromobserverinput,anumberoffactorscanberesponsibleforthisoutcome:

Limitedselfawarenessthisismorelikelytocauseadiscordantorconfusedprofileifsomeoneisnewinaparticularjobrole,ornewtotheworkenvironmentingeneral.

Theindividualinquestionmaybeplayingadifferentrolethanheorshedesirestoplayorwouldbebestatplaying. Whilst theobserverassessmentsmay reflect the currentTeamRole contribution, the selfperceptionmightrevealanaspirationtoplayadifferentrole.

Anindividualmayundergoachangeinvalues,whichmightnotbeimmediatelyobvioustocolleagues,butmayinfluencetheindividualsoutlookandbehaviour.

Theroleofobservers it is importanttoestablishtheexactworkingrelationshipbetweenan individualand thoseobserving them. Anobservermaynot know thepersonwellenough to commenton theirworking style, especially if they have notworked together for long. Additionally, the observers ownTeamRolesmaycomeintoplaywhenansweringObserverAssessments.

It is likelythatanydatasetwillcontainamixofthesedifferentkindsofprofiles. Whensignificantagreement isfound between selfperception and observer assessments, this is used along with other statistical factors, todeterminewhetherornotanindividualcanbeconsideredastrongexampleofaparticularTeamRoletype.1413ThedistributionofBelbinteamrolesamongUKmanagers(Fisher,Hunter&Macrosson,1998),p.132.14IndepthinformationonanalysingandprovidingfeedbackonBelbinreportsisavailableviaourBelbinAccreditationcourse,pleaseseehttp://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=25fordetails.


TheBTRSPIandothermeasuresTheBTRSPIhasbeenanalysedalongsideothermeasures,suchasthe16PFandOPQ. Inhis2007study,Aritzeta,Swailes&Seniorcommentedthat:

Takingtheempiricalstudiestogether,thereissufficientevidencethatdefinitionsofteamrolesarevalidandthat independentlyofthe instrumentusedtomeasureteamroles,resultsareconsistentwithothertheoreticalmodels. The team rolemodel showsevidence for validity that cannotbedisregarded [...].Knowingthetypeofassociationthatateamroleshowswithindividualcognitivestyles,conflictmanagingbehaviourandtheotherareasexploredwillhelptobetterunderstandteamdynamicsandfacilitateteambuildingbehaviours.

~Aritzeta,Swailes&Senior,200715Formore informationonvaliditystudieswhichanalysetheBTRSPIalongsideothermeasures,pleaseconsulttheFurtherReadingsectionbelow.CriterionvalidityCriterionvalidity isconcernedwiththeapplicabilityofatest it isprovedbydemonstratingthattheresultsofagiventestrelateinameaningfulwaytoanexternalcriterionforexample,jobperformance.Thisisofteneasierto judgewhendealingwithability tests,butnevertheless,manyorganisationsacross theworldcanattest thatBelbinTeamRoletheoryhasbeenproventomaketeamsmoresuccessful.In1995,DulewiczinvestigatedtheassociationbetweenTeamRoleandresponsibilityorstatus.16Inordertodoso,hemeasuredsalary,totalremuneration,andthetotalnumberofstaffandtotalexpenditurebudgets,forwhomtheindividualhadresponsibility.HediscoveredthatTeamRolesseemedtobeindependentofmeasuresofsalaryandjobresponsibilities.BelbinTeamRole theorydoesnot specify thatoneTeamRoleoranother is required foramanagerial role,orindeed,aroleattractingahighersalary.Rather,Shi&Tangsstudy,publishedin1997,makestheusefulcommentthatagivenenvironmentmaypromotetheriseofparticularTeamRoles.Forexample,athreateningorpoliticalclimatemaypromoteasoberanddiscerning individualtoamanagerialposition,who isshrewd in judgingtheirenvironmentandothersaroundtheminotherwords,aMonitorEvaluator.Inanorganisationstuckinarutandlackingideasandresources,aPlantorResourceInvestigatorislikelytostandout;whilstinastableandindustriousenvironment,thecharacteristicsofanImplementerorCompleterFinishermightbemorehighlyvalued.17TherearetwomeasureswhichcanbeintroducedtoensurethatanindividualsTeamRoleprofileisagoodmatchwiththeirbehaviourinarealworldscenario.Thesearei)ObserverAssessmentsandii)Jobprofiling.15BelbinTeamRoleModel:Development,ValidityandApplicationsforTeamBuilding(Aritzeta,Swailes&Senior,2007),p.108.16AValidationofBelbinsTeamRolesfrom16PFandOPQusingBossesRatingsofCompetence(Dulewicz,1995)17Teamrolebehaviourandtaskenvironment:Anexploratorystudyoffiveorganizationsandtheirmanagers(Shi&Tang,1997),p.93.


i)ObserverAssessmentsObserverAssessmentscanbeadded toaBTRSPI toensure thatan individuals report isnotdependentonselfawarenessand understanding,butrather isgrounded intheperceptionsofthosewhoworkwiththeperson inquestion.Observersarerecommendedbecause:

Selfperceptionissubjective. Anindividualmayhavelimitedselfinsight. Anindividualmayanswerregardinghowtheywishtobehaveorbeperceived,ratherthanhowtheyreally

are. Responsesfromselfperceptionareisolatedratherthandemocratic. Since only one point of view is provided, there are limited or no opportunities for learning and self

development.WhenObserverAssessmentsareadded toaSelfPerceptionprofile,a fuller report isproduced, integrating the360degreefeedback.Forexample,twopiechartspresentthedifferencesinTeamRolepreferencesbetweenanindividuals own perception and that provided by colleagues. Any discrepancies between selfperception andobserverinputcanleadtofruitfuldiscussionastohowtheindividualisperceivedintheteam,helpingtounearthdiscomfortwithacurrentrole,ortodiscoveranyconflictbetweenthe individualsexisting jobroleandtheroletheywouldliketoplay.

TheuseofBelbinprofilespromotesdiscussionascolleaguescanbeencouragedtowardsopendiscussionofthebehaviourstheydisplayorobserve.Sincebehaviourisevidential,theclaimsthereportmakesaboutanindividualcanbe corroboratedor refutedwith real, everyday examples. Whilst encouragingopenness andhonesty, thelanguageofTeamRoleshelps todiffuseconflictbyusingconstructive,nonconfrontational language toexplorestrengthsandweaknesses.Toviewafullsamplereportcombiningindividualandobserverfeedback,pleasevisit:http://www.belbin.com/content/page/1154/Belbin%20sample%20SPI+Obs.%20ReportsA4.pdf


ii)JobprofilingIt is increasinglydifficult foranemployer to judgean individualspotential success ina job fromqualificationsalone. Whether for recruitment or development purposes, it is important to ensure a goodmatch betweensomeonesTeamRoleprofileandtheTeamRolerequirementsofajob.

Belbin identifies the difference betweeneligibilityandsuitability.Eligibilityreferstopastexperience,e.g.qualifications,training,cultivatedskills. Suitabilityrefers to futurepotential: the degree of fit between anindividuals behavioural characteristics andthejobheorshedoes.In addition to assessing individuals TeamRoles,Belbin can alsobeused toprofile ajob,inotherwords,todefineajobintermsofTeamRoles. Theperson responsible forthe job (for example, the linemanager) isasked to complete the Job Requirementsinventory, which investigates the variouscharacteristics which are required for the

job.Jobobservationscanalsobeaddedsothatthosewhocomeintocontactwith,orhaveacloseunderstandingof,thejobconcerned(e.g.colleagues,managers,clients)cancontributetodefiningtherole.The jobprofilecanthenbedirectlycomparedtoaSelfPerceptionprofileto judgean individualssuitabilityandcompatibilityforthejobinquestion.

Inanysituationwherematchingan individualtoa jobs is important,thisreportcanbeausefultoolto indicatepotential success in the job. For thepurposesof individual reviewanddevelopment, thisprocess canhelp toestablishwheretheremightbediscrepanciesbetweenamanagersexpectationsandanindividualspotential,byaddressingthedifferencesthroughthelanguageofTeamRoles:


Belbins theorieson theirown,arenotapanacea to [sic] the industrys recruitment,managementandleadership problems. However, they are a readily available and excellent aid to preventing disastrousrecruitmentandselectionmistakes.Thisinturnpreventsaddingfurthertothepoolofautocraticmanagersinourindustry. ~HelenBennett,200118

ThereisnoTeamRoleformulaforagivenfunctionalrole(e.g.marketingmanageroraccountant)sincethismaychangefromoneorganisationalculturetoanother.However,theuseofObserverAssessmentsandjobprofilinghelps to anchor an individuals selfawareness in a specificworking environment. For example, an individualstartinganewjobmightlearnaboutthekindofbehaviourthatjobrequires,whilstthemanagermaygaininsightintohowthecandidatemightfulfilthatjobgivenhisorherTeamRolepropensities.Theuseofjobreportingcanprovidemanagerandcandidatealikewithbehaviouralexpectationsastowhatthejobrequires.Itmaybethatsomeonesindividualworkingstyleisagoodfitwiththejobfromtheoutset.Wherethereisnotanimmediatefitandthe jobholder isveryproficient intherole, itcouldbethatthe jobboundariesandrequirementsareslightlydifferentthanthemanagerperceives,orindeed,thattheindividualhasadaptedtotherequirementsoftherole.Jobreportingcanbeusedtoprovidegapanalysisandasafocalpointfordiscussion.InManagementTeams:WhyTheySucceedorFail,JanaKrajcarovascasestudydescribeshowBelbins individualand job profiling was used to resolve conflict between a quality control manager and the CEO. Whilst selfperceptionprofilesallowedtheindividualsconcernedtoappreciatetheirtwodistinctapproaches,thejobprofilingidentified the real source of the conflict: the fact that the CEO envisaged the quality controlmanager role asrequiringCoordinatorandShapercharacteristics,whilstthepresent incumbentwasastrongMonitorEvaluator.The process of defining the job led towards a new job specification and apersonaldevelopmentplan for themanager. Theauthorcomments,wemanagedtosolve thissensitiveproblemnotonlywithoutanypersonalfrustrationsandanimosity,butalsowitha significant increase in themotivationofbothmanagers. Formoreinformation on Meredith Belbins book, Management Teams: Why They Succeed or Fail, please visit:http://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=28.Pleasenote thatBelbin canbeusedasa recruitmentand selection tool. TeamRolesprovidean insight intoworkingandteamrelationships,but theprofilesshouldnotbeusedas thesolebasis formakingrecruitmentdecisions.

18Findingroundpegsforroundholes(HelenBennett,TheHospitalityReview,July2001,p.19).


Belbininpractice

There ismuchevidenceof theuseofTeamRole theory ingeneral topromote selfandmutualunderstanding,more effective management and even significant culture change, which, in turn, translates into higherperformanceandevidentialcommercialandorganisationalsuccess.MoreinformationontheapplicationofTeamRoletheorywithpositiveresultscanbefoundinthecasestudiesinMeredith Belbins book, Management Teams: Why They Succeed or Fail. From tackling language barriers ininternationalfirms,toaddressingchangestrategy,topersonaldevelopmentofyoungpeople,thesecasestudiescontainactualscenariosandoutcomesfromusingtheBelbinmodel.All quotations below are taken from the case studies mentioned above. Please visit our website athttp://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=28 formoredetailsand toorderManagementTeams:WhyTheySucceedorFail.

HereBelbinsmethodsplayedasignificantroleinrevealingthepresenceorabsenceofcertainattributesandincreasingteammembersawarenessofeachother.[...]Thischangehaswithoutexceptionresultedinbetterteamsandbettermanagement. ~AsbjornAanesen,LinjegodsAS

UsingTeamRolesinchangestrategy,oneorganisationcreditstheiruseofBelbinwith:

Thecreationanddeliveryofacredibleandrobuststrategy,whichdelivered55percentprofitgrowthinlessthanthreeyearsandThedevelopmentofarich,diverseteamculture,whichdevelopeditsskillsinthedeliveryofahighqualityserviceandbrandsintheconsumermarketingarena. ~PaulWielgus,SocialInnovationUKandChrisZanetti,AlliedDomecq,Germany

Commentingontheuseofeinterplaceinaschool,DelphineRushtoncomments:

Whether itbeayoungteacherconsideringtheir firstmovefromclassroomoperator intoamanagerialpost, or a senior manager wishing to pursue further leadership roles, it provides feedback on teamstrengthsandcareerdirection. Unconnectedwithassessmentofperformance linkedwithpay, ithelpsstaffevaluate theircurrent responsibilitiesandcontributions. Staffhavenothadaccess to thiskindoffeedbackbeforeandtheyhavefoundittobebothilluminatingandproductive. ~DelphineRushton,RichmondSchool


Testing,BiasandFairnessIntesting, it is importanttoensurethattherearenotsignificantdifferences intestscoresforcertaingroups. Atestcanbesaidtobebiased,forexample, iffemalesconsistentlyscoredsignificantlyhigherthandidmalesforaparticular trait; or ifmembers of different ethnic groups felt discouraged to answer certain items for culturalreasons.BelbinandGenderTheBelbineinterplacesystemcollectsinformationregardingthegenderofrespondentsinordertoscriptreportscorrectly.Thisinformationisnotusedinanypartofthecalculationprocessanddoesnotaffectthedatacollected.Belbin has conducted analysis using a database ofmore than 20,000 respondents,whose datawas processedthroughtheBelbineinterplacesystem. Withthis largedatasetanduptodate,validversionoftheBTRSPI,theeffectofType IandType IIerrorsweresignificantlyreduced(formore informationonType IandType IIerrors,pleaseseetheFurtherReadingsectionbelow).

The graph demonstrates that there is very little gender difference for any Team Role (in this case, only SelfPerceptiondatawasused).Thegreatestdifference(2.6%)betweenmaleandfemalerespondentswasfound forMonitorEvaluator(ME)andeventhisfigurerepresentsonlyasmalldifferenceof1.8MEmarksperSPI.TherearetwopublishedresearchstudieswhichhavebeenconductedconcerningBelbinandgender,withvariedresults. However, it shouldbenoted thatboth studiesusedconsiderably smaller sample sizesof185and390respondentsrespectively.(Formoreinformationonthestatisticalerrorscausedbyusingasmallorinappropriatesample size, please see the Further Reading section below.) Moreover, the findings of both studies werecompromisedbytheuseoftheobsoleteselfscoringBTRSPItoproduceresults.(Formoreinformationonwhythisversionshouldnotbeused,pleasesee theAdministrationandScoringsectionabove). In1996,Balderson&BroderickusedclustersofTeamRolesandreportedthattherewasnostatisticallysignificantdifferencebetweenmembershipofclustersformenandwomen.However,theyalsoreportedthat,inaseparateanalysis,MEandPL


werefoundtodiscriminatebetweengender,withwomenscoringhigheronbothTeamRolesthanmen.19Inturn,Anderson& Sleaps 2004 study claimed to find a bias in favour of CO and SH for men, and TW forwomen.However,theresearchersadmitthattheirresultsarefarfromdefinitive.20Giventhattheresultsofthetwostudiesappeartocontradictoneanother,andinviewofBelbinsfindingsfromadatasetover100timeslarger,BelbinconcludesthatthereisnosignificantgenderbiasforanyTeamRoleandthatthetworesearchstudiesdemonstratenaturalvariationbetweensamplegroups,highlightingonlythoseindividualdifferenceswhichBelbincelebrates.BelbinandEthnicOriginBelbinTeamRolesisaninternationallanguage,usedallovertheworld.TheBTRSPIhasbeentranslatedintomanydifferentlanguagesbyprofessionalsfamiliarwiththeBelbinTeamRoletheory,whotakegreatcaretoensurethatthenuancesof language intheBTRSPIarecaptured indifferent languages. Formoredetailsonouragentsanddistributors outside theUK, please visit http://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=93. TheBelbin einterplace systemallows an individual user to create norms which reflect Team Role preferences for a given culture, whetherorganisationalornational.Formoreinformationonnorming,pleaseseetheNormingsectionabove.BelbinandAgeTodate,nodatahavebeengatheredregardingageandrespondents,sincethisisnotrequiredbyeinterplacefortheprofilingprocess. Whilst therearenoknowndifferences in termsofpreferredTeamRoles, it issometimesobservedthatthosewhohavebeenintheworkenvironmentforalongerperiodoftimearelikelytohaveamoredefinedorpolarised TeamRoleprofile, since a longer experienceof aworking environment tends to increaseawarenessofonesstrengthsandweaknesses.IfanindividualislesssureoftheircontributionandtheTeamRoleprofiledoesnotseemsowelldefined,itisbestpracticetoaddObserverAssessments.Aswellasovercomingthelimitationsofselfreporting,thisgivessomeonenewtotheworkenvironmentsomehintsastowheretheircolleaguesacknowledgetheirstrengthsandtalentstolie, therebymaximising theopportunity for selfdevelopmentand cultivationof their stronger TeamRoles. FormoreinformationonthelimitationsofselfreportingandtheadvantagesofaddingObserverAssessments,pleaseseetheConcordantValiditysectionabove.

19BehaviourinTeams:ExploringOccupationalandGenderDifferences(Balderson&Broderick,1996).20AnEvaluationofGenderDifferencesontheBelbinTeamRoleSelfPerceptionInventory(Anderson&Sleap,2004).


BelbinandManagementTheoriginalresearchconductedbyMeredithBelbininthe1970swasconductedwithasampleoftopmanagers.However,researchhasdemonstratedthattheBTRSPIcanbeusedatalloperationallevels.Inotherwords,TeamRolesare relevant foranyone in theworkenvironmentwho interactswithothersandwishes to learnmoreabouthisorherownbehaviour,and thatofcolleaguesandmanagers. TheObserverAssessmentencouragesfeedback throughout the strata of an organisation and is intended to provide a universal language to addressdifficultissueswhichmightotherwisecauseconflictwithinteams.Having examined the distribution of Team Roles among UK Managers in their 1998 study, Fisher, Hunter &MacrossonwentontoinvestigatetheuseofBelbinfornonmanagers.Theyemployedateamworkingexerciseintheirexperiment,concludingthatBelbinTeamRoletheorycouldbeequallyapplicabletononmanagerialaswellas managerial teams.21 Please see the Further Reading section for more information regarding Belbin andmanagement.

21BelbinsTeamRoleTheory:ForNonManagersAlso?(Fisher,Hunter&Macrosson,2001).


FurtherReadingBooksfromBelbin

Belbinslatestbook,TheBelbinGuidetoSucceedingatWork(A&CBlack,20089.ISBN:9781408115015),providesanidealintroductiontoBelbinTeamRoles,helpingyoutounderstandyourself,andhowtoprojectyourbehaviourtoyouradvantage.It makes an ideal handout for any teambuilding or selfdevelopment course. For moreinformation,pleasevisithttp://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=149.

MeredithBelbinhaswrittentwobookswhichareparticularlyrelevanttotheuseofBelbinTeamRoles:

R.MeredithBelbin,ManagementTeams:WhyTheySucceedorFail(ButterworthHeinemann,3rded.,2010.)ISBN:9781856178075(Originallypublished,1981)ThisbookprovidesaninformativeintroductiontoTeamRoletheory.Itisoneofthemostwidelyread,imaginativeandinfluentialbooksonthisvitalareaofmanagementresearchandwascitedbytheFTasoneofthetopfiftybusinessbooksofalltime.Formoreinformation,pleasevisithttp://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=28.

R.MeredithBelbin,TeamRolesatWork(ButterworthHeinemann,2nded.,2010.)ISBN9781856178006(Originallypublished,1993)ThisbookprovidesanidealpracticalguidetoBelbinTeamRoles.FindouthowtoapplythenineBelbinTeamRoles inapracticalsetting.Operationalstrategiesprovide ideas,techniquesandanewrangeofinformationandadvicewhichcanbeusedtotheadvantageoftheorganisation.

Formoreinformation,pleasevisithttp://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=29.OthertitlesfromBelbinR.MeredithBelbin,TheComingShapeofOrganization(ButterworthHeinemann,1996)R.MeredithBelbin,ChangingtheWayWeWork(ButterworthHeinemann,1997)R.MeredithBelbin,BeyondTheTeam(ButterworthHeinemann,2000)R.MeredithBelbin,ManagingwithoutPowerGenderRelationshipsintheStoryofHumanEvolution(ButterworthHeinemann,2001)Pleasevisithttp://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=156formoregeneralinformationonBelbinbooks.


FurtherReadingResearchStudiesOwingtoitspopularacclaimandsuccessintheworkplace,theBTRSPIhasbeenthesubjectofmuchresearchfrom1993 to the present day, claiming the interest of psychologists and academics, aswell as thoseworkingwithteams.However,researchintotheBTRSPIhasbeencharacterisedbyanumberoferroneouspractices:

The BTRSPI measures behaviour and produces output in terms of Team Roles. Team Roles are notpersonality traits, but clusters of behaviour. Since the BTRSPI is a behavioural, not a psychometric,analysis, research into its psychometric properties produced variable results. Although 23 out of 32studiesshowedpositiveevidencesupporting theBTRSPI,only4outof9studieson thepsychometricalpropertiesof the inventoryproduced supportiveevidence,because the inventorywasbeing tested forcharacteristicsitwasnotintendedtopossess.

Manystudieshavebeenconductedusingthenowobsolete,selfscoringversionoftheBTRSPI,which ismissingaTeamRole,isnotproperlynormed,isnotsubstantiatedbyObserverAssessmentsanddoesnotproducedetailed feedback. Formore information,pleaseseetheAdministrationandScoringsectionabove.

Somestudiescreated,andexperimentedwith,anormativeversionoftheBTRSPI.PleasenotethatBelbinownsthecopyrighttotheBTRSPIandthatreproductionand/oralterationoftheBTRSPIisprohibitedbyBelbin.Formoreinformation,pleasevisithttp://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=7.

Themajorityofearlystudieswereconductedwithsmallor inappropriatesamplesizes,whichmagnifiedthechanceofTypeIandTypeIIerrors.Thesearestatisticalerrorswhicharemorelikelytooccurwhenthesamplesizeissmall:

o In Type I errors (also called rejectingnullwhennull is trueor falsepositive), researchersmistakenlythinkthatastatisticaldifferenceexistswhen,intruth,thereisnostatisticaldifference(inotherwords,thenullhypothesisistruebutwasmistakenlyrejected).

o InType2errors(alsocalledretainingnullwhennullisfalseorfalsenegative),researchersfail

torejectthenullhypothesis,eventhoughthealternativehypothesisistrue.

When reading research studies conducted on theBTRSPI and analysing the findings, it is useful to bear thesefrequentlyencounteredshortcomingsinmind.


einterplaceResearchArticlesThefollowingstudieswereconductedusingeinterplacedata. TheauthorsaskedBelbinAssociatesforaccesstothisdata,whichisfullynormedandconsistsofmorethan5,000records.StephenSwailesetal.areindependentresearchersbasedattheUniversityofHull.HisstudiesdemonstratethattheBTRSPIhasgoodreliabilityandvalidity(pleaseseetheReliabilityandValiditysectionsabove)andwhichtakes intoaccount theunique ipsativeandnonipsative characteristicsof theBTRSPI. The followingarticles inparticulararerecommended(indateorder).Aritzeta,Ayestaran&Swailes,TeamRolePreferenceandConflictManagementStyles(2005)Aritzeta,Senior&Swailes,BelbinTeamRolePreferenceandCognitiveStyles:AConvergentValidityStudy(2004)Aritzeta,Senior&Swailes,BelbinsTeamRoleModel:Development,ValidityandApplications forTeamBuilding(2007)Aritzeta, Swailes& McIntyreBhatty, Further Evidence on the Validity of the Belbin Team Role Self PerceptionInventoryandtheObserversAssessmentSheet(2004)*Aritzeta,Swailes&Senior,TeamRoles:PsychometricEvidence,ConstructValidityandTeamBuilding(2005)Beck,Fisch&Bergander,FunctionalRoles inWorkGroupsAnEmpiricalApproach to theStudyofGroupRoleDiversity(1999)McIntyreBhatty&Swailes,TheReliabilityof the (Belbin)TeamRoleSelfPerception Inventory:Cronbachsalphaandipsativescales(2000)Morison,Chris,AnInvestigationofBelbinTeamRolesasaMeasureofBusinessCulture(2008)Swailes&Aritzeta,ScalePropertiesoftheTeamRoleSelfPerceptionInventory(2006)Swailes&McIntyreBhatty,UsesandAbusesofReliabilityEstimates:TheCaseoftheBelbinTRSPI(2001)vanDierendonck&Groen,BelbinRevisited:TheConstructValidityoftheInterplaceIITeamRoleInstrument(2008)*=ContainsacomprehensiveliteraturereviewoftheresearchtodateontheBTRSPI.


OtherArticlesThe following studies were conducted using the obsolete selfscoring version of the BTRSPI and withoutapproachingBelbinAssociatestorequesttheuseofalargedataset.PleasenotethatevidenceislargelyaffectedbytheuseofanonsanctionedBTRSPIandsmallerdatasets,asoutlinedabove.Anderson&Sleap,AnEvaluationofGenderDifferencesontheBelbinTeamRoleSelfPerceptionInventory(2004)Arroba&WedgwoodOppenheim,DoSeniorManagersDifferinthePublicandPrivateSector?:AnExaminationofTeamRolePreferences(1994)Balderson&Broderick,BehaviourinTeams:ExploringOccupationalandGenderDifferences(1996)Blignaut&Venter,Teamwork:can itequipuniversity science studentswithmore than rigid subjectknowledge?(1998)Dulewicz,Victor,AValidationofBelbinsTeamRoles from16PFandOPQusingBossesRatingsofCompetence(1995)Dulewicz&Higgs,Canemotionalintelligencebemeasuredanddeveloped?(1999)Fisher,Hunter&Macrosson,TheDistributionofBelbinTeamRolesAmongUKManagers(1998)Fisher,Hunter&Macrosson,BelbinsTeamRoleTheory:ForNonManagersAlso?(2001)Fisher,Macrosson&Semple,ControlandBelbinsteamroles(2000)Fisher,Macrosson&Sharp,FurtherEvidenceConcerningtheBelbinTeamRoleSelfPerceptionInventory(1996)Fisher,Macrosson&Wong,CognitiveStyleandTeamRolePreference(1998)Henry&Stevens,UsingBelbinsleadershiproletoimproveteameffectiveness:Anempiricalinvestigation(1999)Lessem&Baruch,TestingtheSMTandBelbininventoriesintopmanagementteams(1999)Macrosson&Hemphill,MachiavellianisminBelbinteamroles(2000)Prichard&Stanton,TestingBelbinsteamroletheoryofeffectivegroups(1999)Rushmer, IsBelbinsshaper reallyTMSs thrusterorganizer? Anempirical investigation into thecorrespondencebetweentheBelbinandTMSteamrolemodels(1996)Shi & Tang, Team role behaviour and task environment: An exploratory study of five organizations and theirmanagers(1997)Sommerville & Dalziel, Project teambuilding the applicability of Belbins teamrole selfperception inventory(1998)

FormoreinformationonanyaspectofBelbin,pleasevisithttp://www.belbin.com.

Documents

BELBIN MRVSR AComprehensiveReview Mar2010