THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GROUP AND ORGANIZATIONAL IDENTIFICATION AND EFFECTIVE INTERGROUP RELATIONS.

Abstract

This study presents both an extension and test of Social Identity Theory with 50 work groups from four health care organizations. We examined the relationship between group and organizational identification, their interplay, and the effectiveness with which dyads of groups work together. As predicted, group identification was negatively related to externally rated intergroup productivity, and positively related to perceptions of goal conflict between groups. Consistent with our hypothesis, organizational identification was negatively related to perceptions of intergroup conflict, and positively related to intergroup productivity. Additionally, organizational identification shaped the relationship between group identification and outcome variables: Whereas group identification was positively related to intergroup conflict under conditions of low organizational identification, the relationship was negative under conditions of high organizational identification. Similarly, the negative relationship between group identification and externally rated intergroup productivity was stronger under conditions of low than high organizational identification.