Cognitive and affective identification: Exploring the links between different forms of social identification and personality with work attitudes and behavior

Summary Individuals often identify with groups in order to either reduce perceived uncertainty or to feel better about who they are as individuals. This suggests that cognitive and affective identification are two distinctive forms of social identification in organizational settings. Because neurotic individuals are highly motivated to reduce perceived uncertainty, they will tend to identify cognitively with groups. Extraverted individuals, on the other hand, are highly motivated to enhance how they feel about themselves and thus identify affectively with groups. Across three studies, we develop measures of cognitive and affective identification and then show that neuroticism is positively related to cognitive identification, whereas extraversion is positively related to affective identification. We also find that affective identification provides incremental predictive validity over and above cognitive identification in the prediction of organizational commitment, organizational involvement, and organizational citizenship behaviors. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

[1]  H. Tajfel,et al.  An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. , 1979 .

[2]  T. Kessler,et al.  Group-based emotions as determinants of ingroup identification ☆ , 2005 .

[3]  Rupert Brown,et al.  Explaining intergroup differentiation in an industrial organization , 1986 .

[4]  N. Ellemers,et al.  Working for the self or working for the group: how self- versus group affirmation affects collective behavior in low-status groups. , 2009, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[5]  Celia V. Harquail,et al.  Organizational images and member identification. , 1994 .

[6]  Kimberly S. Jaussi,et al.  Functional Background Identity, Diversity, and Individual Performance in Cross-Functional Teams , 2003 .

[7]  Abraham Carmeli,et al.  Perceived External Prestige, Organizational Identification and Affective Commitment: A Stakeholder Approach , 2006 .

[8]  C. M. Riordan,et al.  Defining and Measuring Employees’ Identification with Their Work Groups , 1999 .

[9]  D. van Knippenberg,et al.  Organizational identification after a merger: a social identity perspective. , 2002, The British journal of social psychology.

[10]  M. Riketta.  Organizational identification: A meta-analysis , 2005 .

[11]  A. H. Brayfield,et al.  AN INDEX OF JOB SATISFACTION , 1951 .

[12]  J. Dutton,et al.  Positive organizational scholarship : foundations of a new discipline , 2003 .

[13]  Jeffrey R. Edwards,et al.  On the Use of Polynomial Regression Equations As An Alternative to Difference Scores in Organizational Research , 1993 .

[14]  Samuel Juni,et al.  Revised NEO personality inventory , 1995 .

[15]  M. Hogg,et al.  Rediscovering the social group: A self-categorization theory. , 1989 .

[16]  R. Bagozzi,et al.  Self-categorization, affective commitment and group self-esteem as distinct aspects of social identity in the organization. , 2000, The British journal of social psychology.

[17]  Fred A. Mael,et al.  Social identity theory and the organization , 1989 .

[18]  Murray R. Barrick,et al.  Relating member ability and personality to work-team processes and team effectiveness. , 1998 .

[19]  Jeffrey T. Polzer,et al.  How Subgroup Interests and Reputations Moderate the Effect of Organizational Identification on Cooperation , 2004 .

[20]  Robin Martin,et al.  Role of Organizational Identification on Implicit Leadership Theories (ILTs), Transformational Leadership and Work Attitudes , 2001 .

[21]  M. Hogg.  Social Identity and Social Comparison , 2000 .

[22]  S. Worchel,et al.  The Social psychology of intergroup relations , 1979 .

[23]  Karen Gasper,et al.  Affect as information , 2013 .

[24]  Peter Foreman,et al.  Members' Identification with Multiple-Identity Organizations , 2002, Organ. Sci..

[25]  A. Saks,et al.  Socialization Tactics: Longitudinal Effects on Newcomer Adjustment , 1996 .

[26]  Naomi Ellemers,et al.  Continuing and Changing Group Identities: The Effects of Merging on Social Identification and Ingroup Bias , 2003, Personality & social psychology bulletin.

[27]  C. Erik Timmerman,et al.  Communication technology use and multiple workplace identifications among organizational teleworkers with varied degrees of virtuality , 1999 .

[28]  A. Gouldner.  Cosmopolitans and locals : toward an analysis of latent social roles-II , 1957 .

[29]  Michael A. Hogg,et al.  Social Identity Processes in Organizational Contexts , 2001 .

[30]  Blake E. Ashforth,et al.  Identification in Organizations: An Examination of Four Fundamental Questions , 2008 .

[31]  Sonia Roccas.  Identification and Status Revisited: The Moderating Role of Self-Enhancement and Self-Transcendence Values , 2003, Personality & social psychology bulletin.

[32]  Timothy R. Hinkin.  A Brief Tutorial on the Development of Measures for Use in Survey Questionnaires , 1998 .

[33]  D. Knippenberg,et al.  Organizational identification versus organizational commitment: self-definition, social exchange, and job attitudes , 2006 .

[34]  R. Spears,et al.  Opposing effects of personal and collective self‐esteem on interpersonal and intergroup comparisons , 1998 .

[35]  Steven L. Blader,et al.  Identity and Cooperative Behavior in Groups , 2001 .

[36]  Kimberly D. Elsbach,et al.  Us versus Them: The Roles of Organizational Identification and Disidentification in Social Marketing Initiatives , 2002 .

[37]  J. Crocker,et al.  Collective self-esteem and ingroup bias. , 1990 .

[38]  P. Costa,et al.  Normal Personality Assessment in Clinical Practice: The NEO Personality Inventory. , 1992 .

[39]  M. Hogg,et al.  Uncertainty Reduction, Self-Enhancement, and Ingroup Identification , 2005, Personality & social psychology bulletin.

[40]  John P. Meyer,et al.  A three-component conceptualization of organizational commitment , 1991 .

[41]  Michael Inzlicht,et al.  The Devil You Know , 2008, Psychological science.

[42]  Fred A. Mael,et al.  Alumni and their alma mater: A partial test of the reformulated model of organizational identification , 1992 .

[43]  S. Albert,et al.  The Definition and Metadefinition of Identity , 1998 .

[44]  Stephen M. Shortell,et al.  Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder: The Impact of Organizational Identification, Identity, and Image on the Cooperative Behaviors of Physicians , 2002 .

[45]  F. Boen,et al.  Group Status as a Determinant of Organizational Identification After a Takeover: A Social Identity Perspective , 2006 .

[46]  Steve Hinkle,et al.  Psychological Attachment to the Group: Cross-Cultural Differences in Organizational Identification and Subjective Norms as Predictors of Workers' Turnover Intentions , 1998 .

[47]  E. V. Schie,et al.  Foci and correlates of organizational identification , 2000 .

[48]  Blake E. Ashforth,et al.  Evidence toward an expanded model of organizational identification , 2004 .

[49]  Anne O'Brien,et al.  Changing identity: predicting adjustment to organizational restructure as a function of subgroup and superordinate identification. , 2002, The British journal of social psychology.

[50]  Benjamin Schneider,et al.  Correlates of organizational identification as a function of career pattern and organizational type. , 1972 .

[51]  Sang M. Lee,et al.  An Empirical Analysis of Organizational Identification , 1971 .

[52]  R. Roe,et al.  Beyond the three-component model of organizational commitment. , 2008, The Journal of applied psychology.

[53]  Aditi Mankad,et al.  Effective Leadership in Salient Groups: Revisiting Leader-Member Exchange Theory From the Perspective of the Social Identity Theory of Leadership , 2005, Personality & social psychology bulletin.

[54]  Paul C. Godfrey,et al.  Identity in organizations : building theory through conversations , 2000 .

[55]  Benjamin Schneider,et al.  Personal factors in organizational identification. , 1970 .

[56]  G. Matthews,et al.  Emotional Intelligence: Science and Myth , 2003 .

[57]  E. Higgins,et al.  Social psychology: Handbook of basic principles. , 1996 .

[58]  Jacob Cohen,et al.  Applied multiple regression/correlation analysis for the behavioral sciences , 1979 .

[59]  G. E. Harris,et al.  Multiple Dimensions of Organizational Identification and Commitment as Predictors of Turnover Intentions and Psychological Well-Being. , 2005 .

[60]  J. Dutton,et al.  Keeping An Eye on the Mirror: Image and Identity In Organizational Adaptation , 1991 .

[61]  Shelly Chaiken,et al.  Getting at the truth or getting along: Accuracy- versus impression-motivated heuristic and systematic processing. , 1996 .

[62]  Carol Reade,et al.  Antecedents of organizational identification in multinational corporations: fostering psychological attachment to the local subsidiary and the global organization , 2001 .

[63]  R. Vandenberg,et al.  A Critical Examination of the Internalization, Identification, and Compliance Commitment Measures , 1994 .

[64]  P. Costa,et al.  Influence of extraversion and neuroticism on subjective well-being: happy and unhappy people. , 1980, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[65]  T. Cook,et al.  Quasi-experimentation: Design & analysis issues for field settings , 1979 .

[66]  F. Floyd,et al.  Factor analysis in the development and refinement of clinical assessment instruments. , 1995 .

[67]  T. Haladyna.  Developing and Validating Multiple-Choice Test Items , 1994 .

[68]  Oliver Christ,et al.  The utility of a broader conceptualization of organizational identification: Which aspects really matter? , 2004 .

[69]  Blake E. Ashforth,et al.  Identification with Organizations , 1998 .

[70]  G. Stewart,et al.  Composition, process, and performance in self-managed groups: the role of personality. , 1997, The Journal of applied psychology.

[71]  A. Michel,et al.  THE DARK SIDE OF IDENTIFICATION: OVERCOMING IDENTIFICATION-INDUCED PERFORMANCE IMPEDIMENTS , 2003 .

[72]  A. Pruyn,et al.  THE IMPACT OF EMPLOYEE COMMUNICATION AND PERCEIVED EXTERNAL PRESTIGE ON ORGANIZATIONAL IDENTIFICATION , 2000 .

[73]  George Cheney,et al.  On the various and changing meanings of organizational membership: A field study of organizational identification , 1983 .

[74]  Thomas Rotondi.  Organizational Identification and Group Involvement , 1975 .

[75]  Ulrich Wagner,et al.  Organizational identification and organizational commitment: Distinct aspects of two related concepts , 2004 .

[76]  R. Larsen,et al.  Personality and susceptibility to positive and negative emotional states. , 1991, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[77]  Ulrich Wagner,et al.  Social identification among school teachers: Dimensions, foci, and correlates , 2002 .

[78]  M. Hogg,et al.  Social Identity and Self-Categorization Processes in Organizational Contexts , 2000 .

[79]  Fred A. Mael,et al.  Identifying Organizational Identification , 1992 .

[80]  M. Hewstone,et al.  Social Identity Theory's Self-Esteem Hypothesis: A Review and Some Suggestions for Clarification , 1998, Personality and social psychology review : an official journal of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc.

[81]  H. Rao,et al.  Understanding the Bond of Identification: An Investigation of its Correlates among Art Museum Members: , 1995 .

[82]  J. Forgas.  Handbook of Affect and Social Cognition , 2001 .

[83]  Yuen J. Huo,et al.  Superordinate Identification, Subgroup Identification, and Justice Concerns: Is Separatism the Problem; Is Assimilation the Answer? , 1996 .

[84]  A. Manstead,et al.  Intergroup norms and intergroup discrimination: distinctive self-categorization and social identity effects. , 1996, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[85]  Michael G. Pratt,et al.  To be or not to be: Central questions in organizational identification. , 1998 .

[86]  R. Hockey.  Stress and fatigue in human performance , 1984 .

[87]  Lynne J. Millward,et al.  Contractors and their Psychological Contracts , 1999 .

[88]  J. Cameron,et al.  A Three-Factor Model of Social Identity , 2004 .

[89]  R. Ashmore,et al.  An organizing framework for collective identity: articulation and significance of multidimensionality. , 2004, Psychological bulletin.

[90]  L. Porter,et al.  The Measurement of Organizational Commitment. , 1979 .

[91]  Caroline A. Bartel.  Social Comparisons in Boundary-Spanning Work: Effects of Community Outreach on Members' Organizational Identity and Identification , 2001 .

[92]  R. H. Moorman,et al.  Individualism‐collectivism as an individual difference predictor of organizational citizenship behavior , 1995 .

[93]  Scott B. MacKenzie,et al.  Common method biases in behavioral research: a critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. , 2003, The Journal of applied psychology.

[94]  Martin R. Edwards,et al.  Organizational identification: Development and testing of a conceptually grounded measure , 2007 .

[95]  Daniel R. Ilgen,et al.  Multiple professional identities: examining differences in identification across work-related targets. , 2006, The Journal of applied psychology.

[96]  W. Wood,et al.  Social Norms and Identity Relevance: A Motivational Approach to Normative Behavior , 2004 .