Organizational Psychology: When, Why, and How Is Identity Work (Less) Important in Organizational Life?
Identity is often viewed as one of the most important concepts to help understand life in contemporary organizations among organizational scholars. For example, studies of identity among organizational members in roles such as e.g. manager, professional, consultant, and priest have provided valuable insights around managerial and professional work, motivation, change, leadership, control, and gendThis chapter examines if identity is as important as is often claimed, and as a consequence, when and why concerns of identity are triggered in working life, and we do so through a constructionist identity perspective. In the chapter, we argue that many people do not necessarily engage with their identities most of the time and explore why they do in certain kinds of jobs and in particular situati