COMPLEXITY OF ORGANIZATIONAL IDENTIFICATION

Vesna Milanović, Milanka Bogavac, Jelena Golubović

Abstract


Identification is a complex concept. As a psychological variable, identification is the topic of research in the field of organizational behavior. At the same time, identification is the topic of research in the field of social psychology. In both cases, identification is viewed from social identity perspective. Thus, social psychologists are credited with introducing social identity approach to organizational context. Rather little attention has been paid to organizational identification as a unique topic in the relevant literature during the second half of the 20th century unlike other psychological variables such as job satisfaction, work motivation, etc. Therefore, in this paper, organizational identification, its development, and similarity to other concepts, as well as its components, levels, and types are concisely presented. A review of the relevant literature was done. The literature review showed that organizational identification is different from organizational commitment. The components of (organizational) identification are the cognitive component, the affective component, the evaluative component and the behavioral (the conative) component. Some authors distinguish between the foci of (organizational) identification such as identification with the career, identification with the group or other organizational unit (for example the working unit), identification with the organization, and identification with the occupation. At the same time, the different components and foci of organizational identification are differentially associated with different work-related attitudes as well as work-related behaviors. It follows that organizational identification is a unique concept and a multidimensional construct. Therefore, it is necessary to further encourage research efforts in which more attention will be devoted to organizational identification as a unique topic.


Keywords


organizational identification, concept, social identity.

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References


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