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The current study builds on the non-linear Dynamic Systems (NDS) perspective to test the assumption that change in sickness absenteeism is non-linear, and that such change is due to workload, team adaptability and task cohesion. Participants were 37 firefighter teams (n = 250 individuals) from a main European capital city. The research hypotheses were tested using SPSS and the "cusp" package, in the statistical software R. The results suggest that change in sickness absenteeism behaviours over time is non-linear, with the cusp catastrophe model predicting such behaviours better than the linear and logistic models. In our model, task cohesion functions as an asymmetry factor (i.e., the independent variable that determines the strength and discrepancy between the two stable states of the dependent variable) leading to a linear change in sickness absenteeism. Interestingly, both workload and team adaptability function as bifurcation (i.e., the independent variable that determines the change between the two stable states of the order parameter) and asymmetry factors leading to non-linear and linear change in sickness absenteeism over time. This study contributes to the growing evidence that incorporating the NDS perspective enables a better understanding of action teams, namely those working in extreme environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on a two-dimensional perspective of group cohesion, this study examines the emergence of task cohesion and interpersonal cohesion in project teams and their roles in changes in members’ individual satisfaction with the team. Specifically, we tested a direct-effect and mediation model of the cross-level relationship between team task and interpersonal cohesion and individual satisfaction with the team over time. With a sample of 74 newly created project teams, the hypotheses were tested using a two-wave panel design. Results indicate that task cohesion emerges more strongly than interpersonal cohesion during the first stages of work in project teams. Moreover, the cross-lagged relationship between team interpersonal cohesion and individual satisfaction with the team was mediated by team task cohesion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]