Motivating Individuals and Groups at Work: A Social Identity Perspective on Leadership and Group Performance

• Published in: The Academy of Management review Vol. 29; no. 3; pp. 459 - 478
• Main Authors: Ellemers, Naomi, De Gilder, Dick, Haslam, S. Alexander
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Briarcliff Manor Academy of Management 01-07-2004
• Subjects: Business studies; Employee motivation; Group dynamics; Group identity; Group performance; Human resource management; Human resources; Job satisfaction; Leadership; Motivation; Motivation research; Organizational behavior; Performance management; Personality psychology; Personnel management; Self; Social identity; Social psychology; Special Topic Forum on the Future of Work Motivation Theory; Theory; We they distinction; Work motivation; Working conditions; United States > US
• ISSN: 0363-7425; 1930-3807
• DOI: 10.2307/20159054

We argue that additional understanding of work motivation can be gained by incorporating current insights concerning self-categorization and social identity processes and by examining the way in which these processes influence the motivation and behavior of individuals and groups at work. This theoretical perspective that focuses on the conditions determining different self-definitions allows us to show how individual and group processes interact to determine work motivation. To illustrate the added value of this approach, we develop some specific propositions concerning motivational processes underpinning leadership and group performance.