Changing Identities in a Changing Workplace: Identification, Identity Enactment, Self-Verification, and Telecommuting

Abstract

We review literature on three important aspects of identity--namely, identification, identity enactment, and self-verification--to develop an identity-based framework for understanding organizational issues. We then analyze three major dimensions through which telecommuting alters the social context of work and interaction (location of work, time spent telecommuting, and voluntary nature) and discuss the implications of telecommuting within the identity-based framework. Finally, we explore the implications that telecommuting has for identity-related theories.