Abstract
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to introduce the concept of identity play defined as people’s engagement in provisional but active trial of possible future selves. Design/methodology/approach Current research and theorizing on the variety of strategies and behaviors used b
Ibarra, H., & Petriglieri, J. L. (2010). Journal of Organizational Change Management, 23(1), 10–25. DOI
Key findings
- identity work play — Purpose The purpose of this paper is to introduce the concept of identity play defined as people’s engagement in provisional but active trial of possible future selves.
- purpose purpose introduce — Design/methodology/approach Current research and theorizing on the variety of strategies and behaviors used by individuals to tailor, adapt or otherwise change their identities has converged on the notion of…
- design methodology approach — This paper introduces an alternative but complementary notion – identity play – and develops a framework that specifies how identity work and play differ from each other, and proposes a set of ideas about the process…
- introduces alternative but — Findings The authors theorize that role transitions are a useful context to explore identity play and that just as individuals move between cycles of career stability and professional transitions so may they move…
Limits
Qualitative identity-work studies — professional transitions in field research; patterns are illustrative, not population statistics.