Hostname: page-component-76fb5796d-vfjqv Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-28T12:45:15.144Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Coping with organizational crisis: buffering effects of organization sector prototypicality and employee organizational identification

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 May 2022

Erica Pugliese ,
Gennaro Pica Open the ORCID record for Gennaro Pica [Opens in a new window] ,
Flavia Bonaiuto ,
Uberta Ganucci Cancellieri ,
Daan van Knippenberg  and
Marino Bonaiuto
Erica Pugliese
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Psicologia dei Processi di Sviluppo e Socializzazione, Sapienza Università di Roma, Rome, Italy
Gennaro Pica*
Affiliation:
Scuola di Giurisprudenza, Università di Camerino (UNICAM), Camerino, Italy
Flavia Bonaiuto
Affiliation:
Facoltà di Economia, Universitas Mercatorum, Roma, Italy
Uberta Ganucci Cancellieri
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Scienze della Società e della Formazione d'Area Mediterranea, Università per Stranieri ‘Dante Alighieri’ di Reggio Calabria, Reggio Calabria, Italy
Daan van Knippenberg
Affiliation:
Drexel University LeBow College of Business, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Marino Bonaiuto
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Psicologia dei Processi di Sviluppo e Socializzazione, Sapienza Università di Roma, Rome, Italy CIRPA – Centro Interuniversitario di Ricerca in Psicologia Ambientale, Sapienza Università di Roma, Rome, Italy
*
*Corresponding to author E-mail: gennaro.pica@unicam.it
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

We explored the interactive role of an organization's sector prototypicality (the extent to which the organization embodies the prototype of its market sector) and employees' identification with their organization in buffering crises' negative effects on perceived organizational performance. We propose (1) that highly prototypical organizations are perceived as more able to cope with organizational crisis, because of their capacity to reduce the threat associated with crisis, and (2) that this effect is augmented when employees more strongly identify with their organization, presumably because of a higher trust in the organization's capacity to efficiently cope with crisis. Findings from two studies confirmed the hypotheses, by manipulating (study 1) and measuring (study 2) organizational crisis and the organization's sector prototypicality, and by focusing on potential employees (study 1) and on employees of a company facing a financial crisis (study 2). Theoretical and applied implications of results are discussed.

Keywords

Organization sector prototypicalityorganizational crisisorganizational identificationorganizational performancesocial identity
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Management & Organization , First View , pp. 1 - 17
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press and Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management 2022

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Abrams, D., Ando, K., & Hinkle, S. (1998). Psychological attachment to the group: Cross-cultural differences in organizational identification and subjective norms as predictors of workers' turnover intentions. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 24(10), 1027–1039. https://doi.org/10.1177/01461672982410001.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Aiken, L. S., & West, S. G. (1991). Multiple regression: Testing and interpreting interactions. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Ashforth, B. E., & Mael, F. (1989). Social identity theory and the organization. Academy of Management Review, 14(1), 20–39. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1989.4278999.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ashforth, B. E., Rogers, K. M., & Corley, K. G. (2011). Identity in organizations: Exploring cross-level dynamics. Organization Science, 22(5), 1144–1156. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.1100.0591.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ayoko, O. B., Ang, A. A., & Parry, K. (2017). Organizational crisis: Emotions and contradictions in managing internal stakeholders. International Journal of Conflict Management, 28(5), 617–643. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCMA-05-2016-0039.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barreto, N. B., & Hogg, M. A. (2017). Evaluation of and support for group prototypical leaders: A meta-analysis of twenty years of empirical research, Social Influence, 12(1), 41–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/15534510.2017.1316771.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bundy, J., & Pfarrer, M. D. (2015). A burden of responsibility: The role of social approval at the onset of a crisis. Academy of Management Review, 40(3), 345–369. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2013.0027.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cicero, L., Pierro, A., & van Knippenberg, D. (2007). Leader group prototypicality and job satisfaction: The moderating role of job stress and team identification. Group Dynamics, 11(3), 165–175. https://doi.org/10.1037/1089-2699.11.3.165.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cicero, L., Pierro, A., & van Knippenberg, D. (2010). Leadership and uncertainty: How role ambiguity affect the relationship between leader group prototypicality and leadership effectiveness. British Journal of Management, 21(2), 411–421. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8551.2009.00648.x.Google Scholar
Coombs, W. T. (2007). Protecting organization reputations during a crisis: The development and application of situational crisis communication theory. Corporate Reputation Review, 10(3), 163–176. https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.crr.1550049.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Coombs, W. T. (2010). Parameters for crisis communication. In Coombs, W. T. & Holladay, S. J. (Eds.), The handbook of crisis communication (pp. 17–53). Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Coombs, W. T. (2014). Ongoing crisis communication: Planning, managing, and responding. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Coombs, W. T., & Holladay, S. J. (2005). Exploratory study of stakeholder emotions: Affect and crisis. In Ashkanasy, N. M., Zerbe, W. J. & Hartel, C. E. J. (Eds.), Research on emotion in organizations (Vol. 1, pp. 271–288). New York: Elsevier.Google Scholar
Dean, D. H. (2004). Consumer reaction to negative publicity effects of corporate reputation, response, and responsibility for a crisis event. Journal of Business Communication, 41(2), 192–211. https://doi.org/10.1177/0021943603261748.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
De Dreu, C. K. W. (2007). Cooperative outcome interdependence, task reflexivity, and team effectiveness: A motivated information processing perspective. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92(3), 628–638. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.92.3.628.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dutton, J. E., Dukerich, J. M., & Harquail, C. V. (1994). Organizational images and member identification. Administrative Science Quarterly, 39(2), 239–263. https://doi.org/10.2307/2393235.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gioia, D. A., & Chittipeddi, K. (1991). Sensemaking and sensegiving in strategic change initiation. Strategic Management Journal, 12(6), 433–448. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.4250120604.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gwebu, K. L., Wang, J., & Wang, L. (2018) The role of corporate reputation and crisis response strategies in data breach management. Journal of Management Information Systems, 35(2), 683–714. https://doi.org/10.1080/07421222.2018.1451962.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hackman, J. R. (1987). The design of workteams. In Lorsch, J. W. (Ed.), Handbook of organizational behaviour (pp. 315–342). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.Google Scholar
Haslam, S. A. (2004). Psychology in organizations: The social identity approach (2nd ed.). London: Sage.Google Scholar
Haslam, S. A., van Knippenberg, D., Platow, M., & Ellemers, N. (2003). Social identity at work: Developing theory for organizational practice. New York: Psychology Press.Google Scholar
Hayes, A. F. (2013) Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A regression-based approach. New York, NY: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Hegner, S. M., Beldad, A. D., & Kamphuis op Heghuis, S. (2014). How company responses and trusting relationships protect brand equity in times of crises. Journal of Brand Management, 21(5), 429–445. https://doi.org/10.1057/bm.2014.12.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hekman, D. R., van Knippenberg, D., & Pratt, M. G. (2016). Channeling identification: How perceived regulatory focus moderates the influence of organizational and professional identification on professional employees’ diagnosis and treatment behaviors. Human Relations, 69(3), 753–780. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726715599240.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hogg, M. A. (2000). A social identity theory of leadership. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 5(3), 184–200. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327957PSPR0503_1.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hogg, M. A., Cooper-Shaw, L., & Holzworth, D. W. (1993). Group prototypicality and depersonalized attraction in small interactive groups. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 19(4), 452–465. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167293194010.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hogg, M. A., & Terry, D. I. (2000). Social identity and self-categorization processes in organizational contexts. Academy of Management Review, 25(1), 121–140.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hogg, M. A., & Terry, D. J. (2001). Social identity processes in organizational contexts. Philadelphia, PA: Psychology Press.Google Scholar
Hogg, M. A., van Knippenberg, D., & Rast, D. E. (2012). The social identity theory of leadership: Theoretical origins, research findings, and conceptual developments. European Review of Social Psychology, 23(1), 258–304. https://doi.org/10.1080/10463283.2012.741134.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hornsey, M. J. (2008). Social identity theory and self-categorization theory: A historical review. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 2(1), 204–222. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-9004.2007.00066.x.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jin, Y., & Pang, A. (2010). Future directions of crisis communication research: Emotions in crisis – The next frontier. In Coombs, W. T. & Holladay, S. J. (Eds.), The handbook of crisis communication (pp. 677–682). Malden, MA: Blackwell.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, G. H., Jones, B. H., & Little, P. (2000). Reputation as reservoir: Buffering against loss in times of economic crisis. Corporate Reputation Review, 3, 21–29. https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.crr.1540096.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kahn, W. A., Barton, M. A., & Fellows, S. (2013). Organizational crises and the disturbance of relational systems. Academy of Management Review, 38(3), 377–396. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2011.0363.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lee, E.-S., Park, T.-Y., & Koo, B. (2015). Identifying organizational identification as a basis for attitudes and behaviors: A meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 141(5), 1049–1080. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000012.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mael, F., & Ashforth, B. E. (1992). Alumni and their alma mater: A partial test of the reformulated model of organizational identification. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 13(2), 103–123. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.4030130202.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Marsen, K. (2020). Navigating crisis: The role of communication in organizational crisis. International Journal of Business Communication, 57(2),163–175. https://doi.org/10.1177/2329488419882981.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mason, A. (2019). Media frames and crisis events: Understanding the impact on corporate reputations, responsibility attributions, and negative affect. International Journal of Business Communication, 56(3), 414–431. https://doi.org/10.1177/2329488416648951.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Penrose, J. (2000). The role of perception in crisis planning. Public Relations Review, 26(4), 155–171. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0363-8111(00)00038-2.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pierro, A., Cicero, L., Bonaiuto, M., van Knippenberg, D., & Kruglanski, A. W. (2005). Leader group prototypicality and leadership effectiveness: The moderating role of need for cognitive closure. Leadership Quarterly, 16(4), 503–516. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2005.06.002.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Platow, M. J., & van Knippenberg, D. (2001). A social identity analysis of leadership endorsement: The effects of leader ingroup prototypicality and distributive intergroup fairness. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 27(11), 1508–1519. https://doi.org/10.1177/01461672012711011.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reicher, S. D., & Hopkins, N. (2003). On the science of the art of leadership. In van Knippenberg, D. & Hogg, M. A. (Eds.), Leadership and power: Identity processes in groups and organizations (pp. 197–209). London: Sage.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rosenthal, U., Boin, A., & Comfort, L. K. (2001). Managing crises: Threats, dilemmas, opportunities. Springfield: Charles C Thomas Publisher.Google Scholar
Schwarz, A. (2008). Covariation-based causal attributions during organizational crises: Suggestions for extending situational crisis communication theory. International Journal of Strategic Communication, 2(1), 31–53. https://doi.org/10.1080/15531180701816601.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Seeger, M. W., Reynolds, B., & Sellnow, T. (2009). Crisis and emergency risk communication in health contexts: Applying the CDC model. In Heath, R. & O'Hair, D. (Eds.), Handbook of risk and crisis communication (pp. 302–322). New York: Routledge Taylor & Francis.Google Scholar
Steffens, N. K., Munt, K. A., van Knippenberg, D., Platow, M. J., & Haslam, S. A. (2021). Advancing the social identity theory of leadership: A meta-analytic review of leader group prototypicality. Organizational Psychology Review, 11(1), 35–72. https://doi.org/10.1177/2041386620962569.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stets, J. E., & Burke, P. J. (2000). Identity theory and social identity theory. Social Psychology Quarterly, 63(3), 224–237.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. C. (1979). An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. In Austin, W. G. & Worehel, S. (Eds.), The social psychology of intergroup relations (pp. 33–47). Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole.Google Scholar
Turner, J. C., Hogg, M. A., Oakes, P. J., Reicher, S. D., & Wetherell, M. S. (1987). Rediscovering the social group. A self-categorization theory. Oxford and New York: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Ullrich, J., Christ, O., & van Dick, R. (2009). Substitutes for procedural fairness: Prototypical leaders are endorsed whether they are fair or not. Journal of Applied Psychology, 94(1), 235–244. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0012936.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ulmer, R. R. (2001). Effective crisis management through established stakeholder relationships: Malden Mills as a case study. Management Communication Quarterly, 14(4), 590–615. https://doi.org/10.1177/0893318901144003.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van Dick, R. (2004). My job is my castle: Identification in organizational contexts. In Cooper, C. L. & Robertson, I. T. (Eds.), International review of industrial and organizational psychology (vol. 19, pp. 171–203). London: Wiley.Google Scholar
van Dick, R., Christ, O., Stellmacher, J., Wagner, U., Ahlswede, O., Grubba, C., … Tissington, P. A. (2004). Should I stay or should I go? Explaining turnover intentions with organizational identification and job satisfaction. British Journal of Management, 15(4), 351–360. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8551.2004.00424.x.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van Knippenberg, D. (2000). Work motivation and performance: A social identity perspective. Applied Psychology: An International Review, 49(3), 357–371. https://doi.org/10.1111/1464-0597.00020.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van Knippenberg, D. (2003). Intergroup relations in organizations. In West, M. A., Tjosvold, D. & Smith, K. G. (Eds.), International handbook of organizational teamwork and cooperative working (pp. 381–400). Chichester, UK: Wiley.Google Scholar
van Knippenberg, D. (2011). Embodying who we are: Leader group prototypicality and leadership effectiveness. Leadership Quarterly, 22(6), 1078–1091. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2011.09.004.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van Knippenberg, D. (2016). Making sense of who we are: Leadership and organizational identity. In Pratt, M. G., Schultz, M., Ashforth, B. E. & Ravasi, D. (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of organizational identity (pp. 335–349). Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
van Knippenberg, D., & Hogg, M. A. (2003). A social identity model of leadership effectiveness in organizations. Research in Organizational Behavior, 25, 243–295. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-3085(03)25006-1.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van Knippenberg, D., & Hogg, M. A. (2018). Social identifications in organizational behavior. In Ferris, D. L., Johnson, R. E. & Sedikides, C. (Eds.), The self at work: Fundamental theory and research (pp. 72–90). New York, NY: Routledge.Google Scholar
van Knippenberg, B., & van Knippenberg, D. (2005). Leader self-sacrifice and leadership effectiveness: The moderating role of leader prototypicality. Journal of Applied Psychology, 90(1), 25–37. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.90.1.25.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
van Knippenberg, D., & van Schie, E. C. M. (2000). Foci and correlates of organizational identification. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 73(2), 137–147. https://doi.org/10.1348/096317900166949.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wei, J., Ouyang, Z., & Chen, H. A. (2017). Well known or well liked? The effects of corporate reputation on firm value at the onset of a corporate crisis. Strategic Management Journal, 38(10), 2103–2120. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.2639.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Yu, T., Sengul, M., & Lester, R. H. (2008). Misery loves company: The spread of negative impacts resulting from an organizational crisis. Academy of Management Review, 33(2), 452–472. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2008.31193499.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zyglidopoulos, S. C., Georgiadis, A. P., & Carroll, C. E. (2012). Does media attention drive corporate social responsibility? Journal of Business Research, 65(11), 1622–1627. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2011.10.021.CrossRefGoogle Scholar