Thesis (Ph.D.)--Aberdeen University, 2009. / Title from web page (viewed on Apr. 21, 2009). Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--York University, 2008. Graduate Programme in Psychology. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 105-112). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&res_dat=xri:pqdiss&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation&rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:NR51726

abstract: Individuals have multiple identities, and several of them may be simultaneously driving enacted behavior in a given context. Scholars have suggested that intrapersonal identity networks – the combination of identities, relationships between identities, and identity characteristics – influence enactment. However, very little is known about the process by which several components of one’s identity network result in a single stream of enactment. This is important because different factors (e.g., leader actions) may impact this process and, in turn, change the way people act in organizations and interpret the actions of others. I examined a healthcare system designed to surgically treat cancer patients. Taking an inductive interpretivist approach, and using grounded theory methodology, I developed a process model of intrapersonal identity network enactment that also takes into account interpretations of other system members’ enactment. My findings contribute to the social identity literature by suggesting that a common, highly central identity is not enough to align behavior in organizations. Instead individuals may enact a common “higher-order” identity in combination with the rest of their identity network in ways that actually work against each other, even as they genuinely work toward the same purpose. I also extend the literature on multiple identities by explicating a process by which four different identities, and four characteristics of each identity, foster enactment toward the surgical system. Finally, I show how one’s intrapersonal identity network influences how they interpret the enacted behavior of others. In doing so, I extend the identity threat and opportunity literature by showing how one person’s identity threat is another’s identity opportunity, even when they share a common higher-order identity. In short, my study shows how individuals can work against each other, even when they are genuinely working toward the same purpose. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Business Administration 2020

The city of Ottawa, Ontario is neither an independent municipality nor solely Canada’s national capital. Ottawa instead sustains a hybrid state of being where the characteristics and cultural assets specific to the city’s two roles intertwine to generate its unique identity as a “national and local,” or “hybrid,” artistic showcase. As the identity of a place evolves from the practices and individual identities of all those involved with the environment, Ottawa’s self-stated “hybrid showcase” identity can be investigated through a study of the professional English-language theatre organizations operating within city limits. Ergo, this thesis introduces a methodology for conducting data-driven assessments of theatre organizations’ local, national, or hybrid artistic showcase identities, known as the Local-National Hybrid Showcase (LNHS) Scorecard. Using fifteen indicators, the LNHS Scorecard assesses the 2018 artistic programming and programming-adjacent operations of seven Ottawa-based theatre organizations. The results of said assessments illustrate the qualitative value of each organization’s showcase hybridity and identify any perceived preferences towards local or national stakeholders therein. Findings generated by applying the LNHS Scorecard methodology to the selected case studies suggest that as of December 31st, 2018, seven of Ottawa’s professional English-language theatre organizations embraced hybrid (local and national) showcase identities. Moreover, the final scores indicate that six of the seven organizations exhibit a weak to moderate preference for activities impacting Ottawa-based stakeholders. Defining Ottawa’s artistic showcase identity according to the combined practices and resulting showcase identities of the individual Ottawa-based theatre organizations upon which the greater artistic showcase depends, the LNHS Scorecard encourages new conversations about the cultural identity of Canada’s capital.

As the majority of Americans identify with a religious affiliation, the religious context is an important backdrop upon which identity development occurs. For lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, and allied (LGBTQA) youths, the process of development may be complicated in a religious context due to denominational positions on same-sex sexuality. While recent researchers highlighted the importance of contextual influences on LGBTQA developmental processes, few studies have examined LGBTQA sexual and religious identity development. The goal of the current study was to gain a better understanding and appreciation of LGBTQA adolescent and young adult experiences of religious and sexual identity development. Eight adolescents (15-18 years) and 11 emerging adults (19-24 years) who identified as both LGBTQA and having been raised in an active Christian religious tradition participated in the study. The study included three phases: face-to-face individual interviews, journal writings, and focus groups. In each phase of the study, participants were asked to reflect on their experiences of sexual and religious identity development across childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood (if applicable). Findings from the current study supported three broad themes and several subthemes. Early in their development, participants described a behavioral religious participation and early awareness of their same-sex attractions. The young adult participants also shared a tendency to deny their attractions. During their middle phase of experiences, participants often self-labeled as LGBTQA. Religiously, participants shared they questioned their beliefs yet continued their religious participation. A proportion of the participants indicated experiencing guilt, conflict, and mental health difficulties, which many participants related to their emerging sexual orientation and religious involvement. The late experiences, which often coincided with sharing a same-sex attracted label with friends and/or family members, was marked by a religious disengagement, social consequences, self-acceptance, and personal values clarification. Using the participants’ own words these findings are presented, along with possible implications and suggestions for future research.

No description available.

This study examines how some Indian women in South Africa who became managers negotiated their identities in their early lives and in their adult working lives on their journeys to becoming successful managers. Prior studies on identity work and the experience of intersectionality by ethnic minority women have typically focused on professional identities in isolation, separate from early life influences. The current study uses a life story approach to provide a holistic understanding of the journeys of the first significant cohort of Indian women to ascend to management positions in South Africa. I explored the narratives of 13 Indian women managers in senior and top management positions in corporate South Africa using a grounded theory approach to make visible the identity work they have engaged in throughout their lives so far. The life stories of the participants reveal that throughout their lives they have grappled with negotiating a gender identity shaped by Indian cultural assumptions about the roles of men and women in juxtaposition to or in combination with their personal aspirations for professional success. I used a bird cage metaphor to capture how these multiple factors shaped and constrained their lives and careers. The interplay between their racio-ethnic, gender and professional identities is unpacked, and their strategies for reconciling the tensions among their multiple identities are described. In negotiating their identities, these women have developed a particular type of hybrid identity that allows them to move between the compartments into which their professional identity demands and cultural expectations have been divided. The women’s cultural identities remain pivotal in their lives, and they have strong collectivist identities, as they still live within their communities even after the official end of apartheid. My findings enrich and extend the identity literature relating to ethnic minority women by focusing on identity negotiation over time, rather than only on discrete moments in time. My findings also contribute to identity literature in general, as they illustrate that an individual’s identity is formed not only by personal and social identities, but also by the historical and cultural context beyond the organisation within which the person operates. This context is often not considered in identity research in organisations – most studies relating to identity work focus on the tensions between personal identities and professional identities in the workplace. It also reinforces the idea that identity is never fixed but always in negotiation. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Human Resource Management / unrestricted

This study examines the process of establishing and building the new South African Constitutional Court as the first intervention in the development of the Constitutional Hill precinct and as part of an endeavour aimed at creating a new national identity. The argument is reliant on the premise that an agency, in this case the judges of the constitutional court, actively seeking out means of transforming space and place and transferring significances in heritage resources, has contributed self-consciously in the process of social transformation. The study is intended to be descriptive of a social reality and explanatory of a special atypical case. Pierre Nora's seminal concept involving lieux de mémoire, their spatial and material potential, and the means by which lieux are formed and retained as lieux (memory objects/vessels/vestiges of heritage) has framed this study. The premise that space and place embodies and transmits concepts of cultural heritage has inspired ongoing and complimentary theories of the ways in which the built environment manifests narratives of power and the role of place in memory. Nora's lieux are social creations often involving built form and it is clear that historically significant built form can be used in social endeavors which contribute to the creation of a society's identity. Research and analysis of the Constitutional Court archive, selected published critique, examination of the artefact itself and by means of interviews with key professional individuals who participated in the programme of the building of the new Constitutional Court, all contribute to an exposure of the process of the endeavour of the judges of the Constitutional Court to establish a “lieux of cultural identity”.

Research purpose: This study aimed to explore the professional identity construction of accountants from previously disadvantaged groups. The study considered the significance of context and the influence of whiteness and racial micro-aggressions on individual identity construction. Motivation for this study: Little is known about the struggle that people from previously disadvantaged groups in South Africa have to go through to negotiate their professional identities. This study provided a platform for these individuals to share their journey in becoming a professional accountant and understanding the impact of context on their professional identity construction. Research design, approach and method: The study followed a qualitative design, and a multiple case study method was used. Semi-structured interviews were conducted through a narrative lens to explore the individual stories of the participants’ experiences. Non-probability purposive sampling was used. The sample consisted of five black professional accountants from previously disadvantaged groups. Data analysis took the form of individual case narratives followed by a thematic analysis across cases. Main findings: The history of apartheid is still present in South African organisations today in the form of racial micro-aggression and whiteness which create barriers to the professional identity construction of people from previously disadvantaged groups. It was found that the following contexts influence identity construction: political, legislative, socio-economic, educational, organisational, professional, family and cultural contexts. Practical Implications: Legislation such as BBEEE, AA and the EEA are in place to support the transformation agenda of South African organisations. However, in this study it became clear that legislation does not achieve its intended impact. If organisations do not start supporting professionals of colour, it will have a major impact on their skills and career development as well as on talent retention within organisations. Value/Study contribution: The results could become a valuable resource for educational institutions, professional bodies and managers within organisations to enable them to eliminate the barriers of whiteness and micro-aggression and to support people from previously disadvantaged groups to construct positive professional identities. / Dissertation (MCom)--University of Pretoria, 2019. / Human Resource Management / MCom / Unrestricted

Rooted in adult identity development and social identity theories, this dissertation investigated the experiences of discrimination, ethnic and national identity, and psychological distress amongst immigrant adults (ages 40-64) in Canada. A mixed methodological approach was used to quantitatively investigate the links among discrimination, ethnic identity, and psychological distress as well as the links between social identity and identity management strategies. Open-ended questions and thematic analysis were used to identify the ways in which discrimination affects participants’ sense of belonging and connection to their ethnic group and Canadian society. The findings of this dissertation highlight the major protective function of (ethnic and national) identity affirmation, both in buffering discrimination-related stress and guiding the selection of adaptive identity management strategies. Equally, the qualitative work provides insight into the myriad of ways that individuals protect their sense of self when faced with discrimination. A major contribution of this work is an evaluation of the applicability of existing identity theories to adults in midlife and the integration of a number of disparate areas of identity theory. Clinical and policy implications as well as future directions for research are discussed. / Graduate