Since its formal entry to organization studies in 1985, the concept of organizational identity (O... more Since its formal entry to organization studies in 1985, the concept of organizational identity (OI) has had a long and fruitful development. We suggest OI is particularly appealing because it: 1) addresses fundamental questions of social existence about how we are both similar to and different from others; 2) is fundamentally a relational construct connecting apparent oppositions, such as “us” and “them”; 3) is a nexus concept forging relations with other theoretical constructs; and 4) is inherently useful to organizations. In the seven sections of this handbook, we trace conceptual, methodological, and practical challenges of theorizing and utilizing OI in organizations, including issues of the construct’s nomological net, its multi-level dynamics, the role time in OI (e.g., OI change), as well as its pluralistic manifestations (e.g., hybrid and multiple organizational identities).
This paper develops grounded theory on how receiving respect at work enables individuals to engag... more This paper develops grounded theory on how receiving respect at work enables individuals to engage in positive identity transformation and the resulting personal and work-related outcomes. A company that employs inmates at a state prison to perform professional business-to-business marketing services provided a unique context for data collection. Our data indicate that inmates experienced respect in two distinct ways, generalized and particularized, which initiated an identity decoupling process that allowed them to distinguish between their inmate identity and their desired future selves and to construct transitional identities that facilitated positive change. The social context of the organization provided opportunities for personal and social identities to be claimed, respected, and granted, producing social validation and enabling individuals to feel secure in their transitional identities. We find that security in personal identities produces primarily performance-related outc...
Contents: Part I: Introduction. S.L. Blader, A. Wrzesniewski,C.A. Bartel, Identity and the Modern... more Contents: Part I: Introduction. S.L. Blader, A. Wrzesniewski,C.A. Bartel, Identity and the Modern Organization. Part II: Social Motivations in Modern Organizations. M.A. Glynn, C. Marquis, Legitimating Identities: How Institutional Logics Motivate Organizational Name Choices. M.A. Hogg, Organizational Orthodoxy and Corporate Autocrats: Some Nasty Consequences of Organizational Identification in Uncertain Times. S.L. Blader, Let's Not Forget the "Me" in "Team": Investigating the Interface of Individual and Collective Identity. B. Ashforth, Identity: The Elastic Concept. Part III: Social Processes in Modern Organizations. M.G. Pratt, K.G. Corley, Managing Multiple Organizational Identities: On Identity Ambiguity, Identity Conflict, and Members' Reactions. C.A. Bartel, A. Wrzesniewski, B. Wiesenfeld, The Struggle to Establish Organizational Membership and Identification in Remote Work Contexts. S.A. Haslam, S. Reicher, Social Identity and the Dynamics of Org...
Building on work at the individual and organizational levels suggesting that an individual’s self... more Building on work at the individual and organizational levels suggesting that an individual’s self-concept and an organization’s identity are dynamic, we relax the generally held assumption that perceptions of organizational identification are perceived as relatively stable over time and highlight the importance of understanding the perceived dynamism in members’ relationships with their organizations over broader time horizons. We introduce various identification trajectories—a member’s current perception of how his or her identification has evolved and will evolve over time—and investigate the sense of momentum that characterizes these trajectories. We also generate theory about the different action tendencies created by various types of trajectories and examine their influence on cognition, affect, and behavior in the present. Our theoretical model helps to explain why two members of the same organization with similar degrees of identification in the present might think, feel, and...
Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 2016
Individuals need a situated identity, or a clear sense of “who they are” in their local context, ... more Individuals need a situated identity, or a clear sense of “who they are” in their local context, to function. Drawing largely on interpretivist research, we describe the process of identity construction in organizations. Organizations set the stage for members to construct their identities through sensebreaking, rendering individuals more receptive to organizational cues conveyed via sensegiving. Individuals utilize sensemaking to construe their situated identity as they progress toward a desired self. Affect (feeling “this is me”), behavior (acting as “me”), and cognition (thinking “this is me”) are each viable and intertwined gateways to a situated identity that resonates with one's desired self and a given context. Individuals formulate identity narratives that link their past and present to a desired future, providing direction. If their identity enactments and narratives receive social validation, individuals feel more assured, fortifying their emergent identities. The resu...
The role that performance programs and mindlessness play in causing customers to receive poor ser... more The role that performance programs and mindlessness play in causing customers to receive poor service in service bureaucracies was examined. Analysis of 433 service transaction suggests that service agents follow well-learned programs to such an extent that once a given program is triggered they become less receptive to special requests.
Research on socialization in organizational contexts has followed four relatively independent pat... more Research on socialization in organizational contexts has followed four relatively independent paths: socialization stage models, socialization tactics, newcomer proactivity, and socialization content (newcomer learning). We argue that these paths are actually intertwined, such that they jointly lead to newcomer adjustment (specifically, role clarity, task mastery, social acceptance, and role crafting). Although socialization research tends to assume that the process is somewhat negative -- reducing uncertainty and anxiety -- a positive organizational scholarship (POS) lens suggests that newcomers frequently view the process as a positive experience. Indeed, newcomers are apt to feel exhilarated and energized by the novelty and challenges of a new work setting. We examine how the process of socialization may foster not only the "conventional' outcomes of newcomer learning and adjustment, but greater psychological capital and a sense of thriving.
Although socialization is explicitly about preparing newcomers for the future, time plays only a ... more Although socialization is explicitly about preparing newcomers for the future, time plays only a backstage role in most models and studies. To help move time to the front stage, six issues are discussed. First, the distinction between clock time and event time suggests that learning and adjustment are "Iumpy" in that they are often prompted by a series of events. Second, the rate of learning and adjustment are strongly influenced by temporally oriented individual differences, the difficulty of transitioning from one's former role to one's current role, and various features of the work context. Third, the rate is also strongly influenced by socialization processes enacted by the organization (socialization tactics) and newcomers (proactivity). Fourth, time lags, the duration of effects, the relative stability of learning and adjustment, and evolving newcomer needs are considered. Fifth, the increasing need for "swift socialization" is recognized, along with how organizations are addressing this need. Finally, prescriptions are offered for when and how often to measure socialization dynamics.
Since its formal entry to organization studies in 1985, the concept of organizational identity (O... more Since its formal entry to organization studies in 1985, the concept of organizational identity (OI) has had a long and fruitful development. We suggest OI is particularly appealing because it: 1) addresses fundamental questions of social existence about how we are both similar to and different from others; 2) is fundamentally a relational construct connecting apparent oppositions, such as “us” and “them”; 3) is a nexus concept forging relations with other theoretical constructs; and 4) is inherently useful to organizations. In the seven sections of this handbook, we trace conceptual, methodological, and practical challenges of theorizing and utilizing OI in organizations, including issues of the construct’s nomological net, its multi-level dynamics, the role time in OI (e.g., OI change), as well as its pluralistic manifestations (e.g., hybrid and multiple organizational identities).
This paper develops grounded theory on how receiving respect at work enables individuals to engag... more This paper develops grounded theory on how receiving respect at work enables individuals to engage in positive identity transformation and the resulting personal and work-related outcomes. A company that employs inmates at a state prison to perform professional business-to-business marketing services provided a unique context for data collection. Our data indicate that inmates experienced respect in two distinct ways, generalized and particularized, which initiated an identity decoupling process that allowed them to distinguish between their inmate identity and their desired future selves and to construct transitional identities that facilitated positive change. The social context of the organization provided opportunities for personal and social identities to be claimed, respected, and granted, producing social validation and enabling individuals to feel secure in their transitional identities. We find that security in personal identities produces primarily performance-related outc...
Contents: Part I: Introduction. S.L. Blader, A. Wrzesniewski,C.A. Bartel, Identity and the Modern... more Contents: Part I: Introduction. S.L. Blader, A. Wrzesniewski,C.A. Bartel, Identity and the Modern Organization. Part II: Social Motivations in Modern Organizations. M.A. Glynn, C. Marquis, Legitimating Identities: How Institutional Logics Motivate Organizational Name Choices. M.A. Hogg, Organizational Orthodoxy and Corporate Autocrats: Some Nasty Consequences of Organizational Identification in Uncertain Times. S.L. Blader, Let's Not Forget the "Me" in "Team": Investigating the Interface of Individual and Collective Identity. B. Ashforth, Identity: The Elastic Concept. Part III: Social Processes in Modern Organizations. M.G. Pratt, K.G. Corley, Managing Multiple Organizational Identities: On Identity Ambiguity, Identity Conflict, and Members' Reactions. C.A. Bartel, A. Wrzesniewski, B. Wiesenfeld, The Struggle to Establish Organizational Membership and Identification in Remote Work Contexts. S.A. Haslam, S. Reicher, Social Identity and the Dynamics of Org...
Building on work at the individual and organizational levels suggesting that an individual’s self... more Building on work at the individual and organizational levels suggesting that an individual’s self-concept and an organization’s identity are dynamic, we relax the generally held assumption that perceptions of organizational identification are perceived as relatively stable over time and highlight the importance of understanding the perceived dynamism in members’ relationships with their organizations over broader time horizons. We introduce various identification trajectories—a member’s current perception of how his or her identification has evolved and will evolve over time—and investigate the sense of momentum that characterizes these trajectories. We also generate theory about the different action tendencies created by various types of trajectories and examine their influence on cognition, affect, and behavior in the present. Our theoretical model helps to explain why two members of the same organization with similar degrees of identification in the present might think, feel, and...
Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 2016
Individuals need a situated identity, or a clear sense of “who they are” in their local context, ... more Individuals need a situated identity, or a clear sense of “who they are” in their local context, to function. Drawing largely on interpretivist research, we describe the process of identity construction in organizations. Organizations set the stage for members to construct their identities through sensebreaking, rendering individuals more receptive to organizational cues conveyed via sensegiving. Individuals utilize sensemaking to construe their situated identity as they progress toward a desired self. Affect (feeling “this is me”), behavior (acting as “me”), and cognition (thinking “this is me”) are each viable and intertwined gateways to a situated identity that resonates with one's desired self and a given context. Individuals formulate identity narratives that link their past and present to a desired future, providing direction. If their identity enactments and narratives receive social validation, individuals feel more assured, fortifying their emergent identities. The resu...
The role that performance programs and mindlessness play in causing customers to receive poor ser... more The role that performance programs and mindlessness play in causing customers to receive poor service in service bureaucracies was examined. Analysis of 433 service transaction suggests that service agents follow well-learned programs to such an extent that once a given program is triggered they become less receptive to special requests.
Research on socialization in organizational contexts has followed four relatively independent pat... more Research on socialization in organizational contexts has followed four relatively independent paths: socialization stage models, socialization tactics, newcomer proactivity, and socialization content (newcomer learning). We argue that these paths are actually intertwined, such that they jointly lead to newcomer adjustment (specifically, role clarity, task mastery, social acceptance, and role crafting). Although socialization research tends to assume that the process is somewhat negative -- reducing uncertainty and anxiety -- a positive organizational scholarship (POS) lens suggests that newcomers frequently view the process as a positive experience. Indeed, newcomers are apt to feel exhilarated and energized by the novelty and challenges of a new work setting. We examine how the process of socialization may foster not only the "conventional' outcomes of newcomer learning and adjustment, but greater psychological capital and a sense of thriving.
Although socialization is explicitly about preparing newcomers for the future, time plays only a ... more Although socialization is explicitly about preparing newcomers for the future, time plays only a backstage role in most models and studies. To help move time to the front stage, six issues are discussed. First, the distinction between clock time and event time suggests that learning and adjustment are "Iumpy" in that they are often prompted by a series of events. Second, the rate of learning and adjustment are strongly influenced by temporally oriented individual differences, the difficulty of transitioning from one's former role to one's current role, and various features of the work context. Third, the rate is also strongly influenced by socialization processes enacted by the organization (socialization tactics) and newcomers (proactivity). Fourth, time lags, the duration of effects, the relative stability of learning and adjustment, and evolving newcomer needs are considered. Fifth, the increasing need for "swift socialization" is recognized, along with how organizations are addressing this need. Finally, prescriptions are offered for when and how often to measure socialization dynamics.
Uploads
Papers by Blake Ashforth