Culture, Self-Identity, and Work

The focus of this book is the development and application of a middle-range theory of culture, self-identity and work behaviour. According to the authors' self-representative theory, three components are relevant to an individual's work behaviour: cultural and situational characteristics, cognitive representation of the self, and managerial practices and techniques used in an organization. Culture is viewed as a shared knowledge structure that results in decreased variability in individual interpretation of stimuli. The self is viewed as a dynamic interpretive structure that shapes an individual's interpretation of social milieu. Managerial practices influence work behaviour, and in this book the focus is on how these practices relate to the components of culture and the self. A final chapter provides a number of specific recommendations for how organizations might consider structuring their environment and managerial practices in order to match culture-self interaction.