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Do behaviors of string quartet ensembles represent self‐managed teams?

Malka Tal‐Shmotkin (School of Management, The College for Academic Studies, Or‐Yehuda, Israel)
Avi Gilboa (Music Department, Bar‐Ilan University, Ramat‐Gan, Israel)

Team Performance Management

ISSN: 1352-7592

Article publication date: 1 March 2013

878

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to explore whether string quartets (SQs) adopt self‐managed‐team (SMT) principles in line with organizational models of team work. This exploration is significant in face of the status of the SQ as one of the leading and prototypical ensembles in Western music.

Design/methodology/approach

Members of 22 leading SQs around the world were contacted and asked to fill out a questionnaire which measures SMT characteristics in managerial teams while referring to their own SQ ensemble.

Findings

Results showed that SMT levels of all SQs were extremely high (M=4.39, SD =0.39, on a 1 to 5 scale). In addition, four factors were revealed in this questionnaire: Interpersonal relations and shared monitoring, Leadership, Management style, and Resources explaining 18.4, 15.9, 14.2, and 11.9 percent of the variance, respectively.

Research limitations/implications

The current sample is limited in size and may not adequately represent professional SQs worldwide. Nevertheless, this study demonstrates that SQs actually work as SMTs. Additionally, the SMT frame of SQs is expressed in distinct factors of characteristics.

Originality/value

The current study is one of a few investigations that examined descriptions of SQ members about behaviors in their own musical ensembles. This study suggests that successful SQs may serve as a benchmark for various SMTs in organizational settings.

Keywords

Citation

Tal‐Shmotkin, M. and Gilboa, A. (2013), "Do behaviors of string quartet ensembles represent self‐managed teams?", Team Performance Management, Vol. 19 No. 1/2, pp. 57-71. https://doi.org/10.1108/13527591311312097

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2013, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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