The mobility of team members and team creativity: exploring the mediating role of team cognition

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate how the mobility of team members affects team creativity in knowledge-worker teams and the mediating role of team transactive memory system (TMS) and team creative efficacy. Design/methodology/approach Multiple surveys were conducted on team leaders and members in knowledge-worker teams in China. A total of 94 teams were analyzed by adopting the confirmatory factor analyses, hierarchical regression analysis and bootstrap analysis method. Findings The results show that frequent team member mobility is negatively related to a knowledge-worker team's creativity, and the relationship is mediated by team TMS and creative efficacy. Originality/value This study contributes to a deeper understanding of how the mobility of team members affects team creativity in knowledge-worker teams by exploring the underlying mechanisms from the perspective of team cognition. Specifically, team TMS and creative efficacy mediate the relationship between team member mobility and team creativity.