Implications of Organization Identification - Literature review Example

Implications of Organization Identification Name: Course Name and Code: Professor’s Name: Date: Implications of Organization Identification Introduction Organization Identity Definition The purpose of this essay is to find out the implications of organizational identification in an organization. Organizational identity implies the agencies of human actions in the framework of an organization, as per Davies et al’s (2001, 114) idea which states “How we see ourselves.” Organizational identity is regarded as the basis for the identification of employees in an organization (Davies et al 2001, 114). Organizational identity is important to employees as it results in compatibility in terms of the values of the employer to employees’ belief system. This means that there will be cohesion between the organizational ideals as well as the individual ideals. This kind of process is as a result of two given routes: the first one being the affinity with employers, where individuals are able to self select in order to join a firm with values that match their beliefs (Davies 2001, 114). Secondly, in terms of emulation, the beliefs of an individual are modified during the employment period making them tied closely with that of the employer (Witting 2006, 19). Organizational identity can also be of benefit to an organization. This is because organizational identity has a relation to attitude, knowledge, and behavior with regard to the objectives of a given organization. On the level of an organization, when the organizational identity is distinctive, central, and continuous core for an organizational scheme, it can result in the improvement of the effectiveness and performance of an organization (Witting 2006, 21). In addition, it can be used as framing mechanisms for decision making in an organization (Witting 2006, 19). These kinds of effects aid the organization in attaining the objectives, and facilitate in implementation and conception of strategic actions. In the long run, this will result in more value being placed on the organization. Managers and employees also benefit from this since organizational identity has an influence on the premises that are beneath the choices of employees with regard to operational, organizational, and strategic issues (Hong-Wei & Mukherjee 2006, 18). Managers are also able to work effectively with employees that positively identify themselves with the organization. In addition, they are able to attain the organizational objectives in a cohesive environment. According to the identification theory, the aspect of organizational identity entails three major components (Gioia et al 2000, 67). This includes the feelings of togetherness in an organizational setting, the behavioral and attitudinal support to the organization, and the view of common traits with other members of the organization. Other theories that form the basis of organizational identity are self categorization theory and social identity theory (Hong-Wei & Mukherjee 2006, 18). Organizational identity has been shown to be a unique form of social identity, as it dwells on ways in which employees define themselves on the basis of the organization. This manner of identity can therefore be said to be the social group that an individual belongs. The implication of social identity is that people define themselves via a group membership and give certain traits to the group. When the identification is strong, the attitude of the individual and the behavior of an individual are thus governed by the norms of the group (Davies 2001, 114). As per the review of literature, there are three variables that can have an effect on organization identity. This includes the perception of external prestige associated with the organization, value congruence, and the length of the tenure (Hong-Wei & Mukherjee 2006, 18). The length of the tenure is expected to have an impact on organization identity. Definition Organizational identity can be seen to be a significant theoretical lens that can be used in explaining the relation between the employer and the employee. One of the definitions of organizational identity is that it is a link between defining the organization, as well as the defining one self, on the basis of cognition (Gioia et al 2000, 63). This is to say that organizational identity comes up whenever an individual incorporates the view or the values of the employer to their belief systems, resulting in compatibility. According to Gioia et al (2000, 63), organizational identity can be said to be that which is taken by workers to be the core attributes of an organization, what makes an organization distinct and thus outstanding from the rest in the views of employees, and what is seen by employees as continuing and enduring, irrespective of certain changes in organizational environments. The above mentioned three characteristics imply that organizations that have strong identities have core attributes, are distinct from the rest, and are the same for long periods. Organizational identification also attains its relation to the question of “Who am I in line with the organization?” (Davies 2001, 114). In this membership, there are certain attachments such as social identification which makes up the cognition for membership of the group, emotional significance and value. This construct of social identity with regard to organizational identity has been linked with three concepts: affective commitment, internationalization, and positive fit of an organization (Gioia et al 2000, 63). The distinction that exists between organizational identity as well as other concepts such as social identity is its self-definitional; therefore a worker shares the beliefs and values of an organization instead of just accepting them. Cooper and Sparrow (2003) give a summary of the distinction, where commitment brings up the question of whether or not the employee should maintain membership with the employer, while identity goes round issues such as who one is, and the extent to which one can define oneself via the organization. This is to say that the individual can have a commitment to the organization without necessarily succeeding in defining themselves as per the values of the firm. Critical Literature Review The two main themes which research on organizational identity has focused on include the implications or outcomes of organization identity, and precursors of identity (Gioia et al 2000, 23). According to Gioia et al (2000, 23) specific factors improve organizational identity, with the chance that identification of individuals with the employer is high where: employees are given the chance to work for groups considered to have high status, other individuals of the group have similar traits to the rest of the members, a staff member is also involved in the smaller groups, the possibilities of internal conflicts are reduced in group identities, tenure is increased, the personality traits of individuals gives the suggestion of disposition or high propensity to develop identity with the firm, the values of the organization are in line with those of individuals. It can be noted that these hypotheses as outlined by the author have a close relation to the theory of self-categorization. In addition, they are relevant for comparisons of inter organizations, for instance organizational identity is going to be high whenever individuals work under groups with high status as perceived externally. Nevertheless, it is questionable when the author indicates that employees are likely to develop identity with the organization particularly when it has a high status as per external perception. This might not be the case because employees can work for a high status group but still experience low motivation and reduced job satisfaction as a result of poor working conditions. It is therefore imperative to note that employees can still develop identity with a low status group especially in cases where they are given a chance to air their thoughts, and develop good relationship with management. Moreover, the study was carried out in 2000, which means that the generalized findings have to be tested with today’s employees. This is because there have been several changes that have taken place in the corporate world, and these developments cannot be compared with the research findings of Gioia et al, as time has had a huge impact on the research. According to Witting (2006, 19), organizational identification has a positive link with job satisfaction, performance, behavior of citizens, while negatively linked with actual turnover and intentions of turnover. This is to say that the presence or absence of organizational identity might have significant impacts on organizational performance. Analyzing the aspects of the findings such as job satisfaction, the loss of security offered by organizations shows the absence of meaning, control, and belonging. This means that employees will feel dissatisfaction in their place of work as a result of the lack of meaning. Whenever employees feel insignificant in their organizations, it is very difficult to help them identify with the organization. They will not be able to perceive the positive values of the organization, and use them to identify with them. Organizations can also boost the performance of employees by ensuring that its values are well identified with individuals. As per the findings of the author, it is important to note that turnover can actually increase when organizational identification is absent. This is because individuals are not able to perceive their function in the firm, and would easily leave for better opportunities in the external environment. As employees develop the capacity to identify strongly with the firm, their beliefs concerning the organization are highly likely to turn out to be more positive (Gautam 2004, 302). For instance, they can believe that the outputs of the organization are highly valuable. According to Cornelissen (2003, 114), it was found that scientists that have a high identification with the organization showed favorable attitudes in their jobs, profession, and organization as compared to those experiencing low identification with their organization. Organizational identity could also have a direct impact on the behavior of members. Whenever individuals develop identification with an organization, they are likely to make certain decisions that are in line with the objectives of the organization, will direct their efforts self consciously in attaining organizational objectives, as well as gain satisfaction via perceiving movement to relevant objectives (Stuart 2000, 13). However, this is a generalized finding because not all employees will act in the same way. Other employees might see a positive by the management as a way of retaining them in their positions, and therefore make certain demands such as a promotion, with the aim of gaining better satisfaction. It is therefore important for the author to dig deeper on the impacts of his findings and look at both sides of the coin. This is to say that the researcher should dwell on the possible reactions of the employees, which are both positive and negative. Research also shows that employees that experience high levels of identification with the organization could generally be highly productive, better rewarded and motivated, highly satisfied, as well as have lower propensity to quit their jobs (Foreman &Whetten 2000, 619). This is in contrast to those employees that have low levels of organizational identification. These findings have a high degree of generalization, in that the researchers to not appreciate the specific factors that make employees develop high identification with the organization. For instance, a factor such as increased wages is a common factor that makes employees stay in their jobs and identify well with the organization. Evaluation Literatures that are competing are against the notion of increased identification with profession, but appreciate the focus on intra, micro organizational groupings, for instance workgroups. There are limited numbers of empirical studies that have placed a focus on these kind of clusters in relation to organizational identification. Employees are able to identify strongly with workgroups compared to their employers, and these are used in predicting positive attitudes of employees. This argument is developed on the assertion that identity is stronger in small groups, because they are likely to develop communities which are distinct, and which have common values as a result of sustained interaction. The literature on self identity has proposed that individuals will have membership of several social groups, and they result in the senses of appreciating the self. Nevertheless, these identities are not likely to have equal meanings or even worth, and might be arranged in a subconscious, hierarchical manner. Therefore, individuals might hold several identities of the organization, and not just one as argued by several researchers. In a working environment, these several identities might be as a result of connections developed with colleagues, a given department, the profession, or the organization as a whole. In a best case scenario, beliefs and values of individuals in an organization will be mutually reinforcing, and complementary. Therefore, individuals will highly likely to identify strongly with various workgroups and professions. Conclusion The purpose of this essay was to find out the implications of organizational identification in an organization. The best definition of organization identification chosen for the study was that of Davies et al’s idea which states “How we see ourselves.” The three groups that were seen to benefit from organizational identification were managers, employees, and the organization. Organizational identity is important to employees as it results in compatibility in terms of the values of the employer to employees’ belief system. Organizational identity can also be of benefit to an organization. This is because organizational identity has a relation to attitude, knowledge, and behavior with regard to the objectives of a given organization. Managers and employees also benefit from this since organizational identity has an influence on the premises that are beneath the choices of employees with regard to operational, organizational, and strategic issues. Self-reflection During the gathering of information from the empirical studies, I was able to obtain relevant information that helped in the compilation of the thesis. I was particularly interested in the concluding comments of the researchers. It was interesting to note that there were certain trends that were common in almost all the findings of the authors. A majority of the methodology used had a weak aspect, such as generalization aspect. Nevertheless, I learnt that it was these loopholes that called for more research in the field of organizational identification. In addition, I have learnt that no research is perfect, and it is this that calls for more improvement year in year out. Reference List Cornelissen, Joep, Wim, Elving. 2003. “Managing Corporate Identity: an Integrative Framework of Dimensions and Determinants.” Corporate Communications: An International Journal 8 (2): 114-120. Davies, Gary, Rosa Chun, and Rui Vinhas da Silva. 2001. “The Personification metaphor as a measurement approach for corporate prestige.” Corporate Prestige Review 4 (2): 113-127. Foreman, P. and Whetten, D.A. 2002. “Members’ Identification with Multiple-Identity Organizations.” Organization Science, 13, (6): 618-635. Gautam, Thaneswor, Rolf van Dick, and Ulrich Wagner. 2004. “Organizational Identification and organizational commitment: distinct aspect of two related concepts.” Asian Journal of Social Psychology 7 (3): 301-315. Gioia, Dennis, Majken Schultz, and Kevin Corley. 2000. “Organizational Identity, Image and Adaptive Instability.” Academy of Management Review 25 (1): 63-81. Hong-Wei He and Avinandan Mukherjee. 2006. Does Organizational Identification Mediate the Job Satisfaction-Commitment Linkage? Empirical Evidence from Chinese Salespersons. University of East Anglia, UK. Stuart, Albert Blake Ashforth, and Janet Dutton. 2000. “Organizational Identity and Identification: Charting new waters and building new bridges.” Academy of Management Review 25 (1): 13-17. Witting, Marjon. 2006. Relations between Organizational Identity, Identification, and Organizational Objectives: An Empirical Study in Municipalities, Management Studies, 2 (3), pp. 3-20. Read More