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VARIABLES 95

Figure 5.6
Diagram of the relationship among the independent, intervening, and dependent variable.
Time: t 1 t 2 t 3

Workforce Creative Organizational
diversity synergy effectiveness

Independent variable Intervening variable Dependent variable

Example 5.11 In Example 5.10 where the independent variable workforce diversity influ-
ences the dependent variable organizational effectiveness, the intervening
variable that surfaces as a function of the diversity in the workforce is creative
synergy. This creative synergy results from a multiethnic, multiracial, and multi-
national (i.e., diverse) workforce interacting and bringing together their multi-
faceted expertise in problem solving. This helps us to understand how
organizational effectiveness can result from having diversity in the workforce.
Note that creative synergy, the intervening variable, surfaces at time t 2 , as a func-
tion of workforce diversity, which was in place at time t 1 , to bring about orga-
nizational effectiveness in time t 3 . The intervening variable of creative synergy
helps us to conceptualize and understand how workforce diversity brings about
organizational effectiveness. The dynamics of these relationships are illustrated
in Figure 5.6.

Example 5.12 It would be interesting to see how the inclusion of the moderating variable man-
agerial expertise in the foregoing example would change the model or affect the
relationships. The new set of relationships that would emerge in the presence of
the moderator can be depicted as in Figure 5.7. As can be seen therefrom, man-
agerial expertise moderates the relationship between workforce diversity and
creative synergy. In other words, creative synergy will not result from the multi-
faceted problem-solving skills of the diverse workforce unless the manager is
capable of harnessing that synergy by creatively coordinating the different skills.
If the manager lacks the expertise to perform this role, then no matter how many
different problem-solving skills the diverse workforce might have, synergy will
just not surface. Instead of functioning effectively, the organization might just
remain static, or even deteriorate.
It is now easy to see what the differences are among an independent variable,
intervening variable, and a moderating variable. The independent variable helps
to explain the variance in the dependent variable; the intervening variable sur-
faces at time t 2 as a function of the independent variable, which also helps us to
conceptualize the relationship between the independent and dependent variables;
and the moderating variable has a contingent effect on the relationship between
two variables. To put it differently, while the independent variable explains the
variance in the dependent variable, the intervening variable does not add to the