Organizational Identification

Organizational identification refers to the extent to which employees define themselves in terms of their organizational memberships. Research has shown that employees who identify with their organizations tend to make stronger contributions and exert greater effort at work. But what exactly is organizational identification, and when does it occur? Do certain factors in the workplace promote organizational identification, and what types of consequences does it have for employees and their employers? Is identification an exclusively positive phenomenon in organizations? Finally, if organizational identification is, on the whole, beneficial for organizations, what steps can managers take to foster identification among employees? This chapter seeks to address these questions and more by reviewing the literature on organizational identification.