Recognizing “me” benefits “we”: Investigating the positive spillover effects of formal individual recognition in teams.
研究团队中正式个人认可（如月度最佳员工）对队友及团队绩效的积极溢出效应，发现认可中心位置的成员能通过社会影响提升整体表现。
Many organizations use formal recognition programs (e.g., "employee of the month") as a way to publically acknowledge an individual employee's outstanding performance and motivate continued high performance. However, it remains unclear whether emphasizing individual achievement in a team context is beneficial or detrimental for recipients' teammates and, by extension, the team as a whole. Drawing on a social influence perspective, we examine potential spillover effects of individual formal recognition programs in teams. We hypothesize that a single team member's recognition will produce positive spillover effects on other team members' performance, as well as overall team performance, via social influence processes, especially when the award recipient is located in a central position in a team. Findings from 2 lab experiments of 24 teams and 40 teams (Study 1 and Study 2, respectively) and a field experiment of 52 manufacturing teams (Study 3) reveal that formally recognizing a team member leads to positive changes in her/his teammates' individual and collective performance. Thus, formal social recognition programs can potentially provide a motivational effect beyond individual recipients. (PsycINFO Database Record