Boundary Work in Knowledge Teams

The purpose of this article is to promote an open systems perspective on team research. The authors develop a model of team boundary activities: boundary spanning, buffering, and reinforcement. The model examines the relationship between these boundary activities and team performance, the moderating effects of organizational contextual factors, and the mediating effect of team psychological safety on the boundary work-performance relationship. These relationships were empirically tested with data collected from 64 software development teams. Boundary spanning, buffering, and boundary reinforcement were found to relate to team performance and psychological safety. Both relationships are moderated by the team's task uncertainty and resource scarcity. The implications of the findings are offered for future research and practice.