Can too many cooks spoil the broth? Coordination costs, fatigue, and performance in high-intensity tasks

Abstract

Workplace flexibility in the context of collaborative tasks offers many benefits but also carries several risks. While more collaborators can reduce fatigue and enhance performance (we call this the ‘fatigue effect’), coordination costs also increase (we call this the ‘coordination costs effect’). We investigate this trade-off in a complex team task with high effort costs in a natural setting. We use an instrumental variables approach combined with an extensive sensitivity analysis to identify the effect of in-game substitutions on performance in professional basketball. Results indicate that an increased number of collaborators (players) has a negative effect on team performance. We also find that the most successful teams are able to optimally trade off both effects.