PATHWAYS FOR POSITIVE IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION AT WORK: FOUR TYPES OF POSITIVE IDENTITY AND THE BUILDING OF SOCIAL RESOURCES.

Abstract

In this paper we organize research on work-related identities into a four-perspective typology that captures different ways identities can be “positive.” Each perspective on positive identity—virtue, evaluative, developmental, and structural—highlights a different source of positivity and opens new avenues for theorizing about identity construction. We use these four perspectives to develop propositions about how different forms of positive work-related identity construction can strengthen employees through building social resources.