This book is lovingly dedicated to all the students who have graced my classes and courses at the Kellogg School of Management. Without those men and women and the organizations that encouraged and supported them on their journeys of self-development, I would not have a place in this world. The questions my students have raised and the personal stories of triumph—and sometimes disappointment—they have shared with me have shaped me as a scholar and profoundly affected decades of my research. Because of their insights, stories, and questions and their desire to improve their leadership and team effectiveness, I have a guiding purpose. And, with that purpose, I have joy in my life.

I solemnly caution my young PhD students—in training to be professors—that my litmus test for a new research project is: “Would I want to bring whatever results we might find into the management classroom?” This book is a compilation of the social science research I want to bring to the management classroom. Accordingly, this book contains highlights not only from my own research studies, but from those of my collaborators, colleagues, and the fields of management science, social psychology, organizational behavior, cognitive psychology, and developmental psychology.

The team who pulled this book together is the heartbeat of the Kellogg Team and Group Research Center (KTAG): Larissa Tripp, Joel Erickson, Marissa Greco, and Ellen Hampton. Their energy, dedication, and spirit embody the creative conspiracy this book is all about.