The effect of autonomy on team creativity and the moderating variables

Autonomy, the freedom to choose how to accomplish tasks, is shown to have positive impact on individual creativity. The literature suggests that this positive effect is mediated by intrinsic motivation. It seems reasonable to assume that autonomy would benefit team creativity as well. However, the literature does not provide consistent support for this latter notion. In this conceptual paper, individual autonomy and team autonomy are differentiated. Task interdependence and team level creative self-efficacy are proposed to be moderating variables.