Identity and Meaningful Work.

Although both established as fields in their own right, meaningful work (Rosso, Dekas, & Wrzesniewski, 2010; Lepisto & Pratt, 2017) and identity (Ashforth, Rogers, & Corley, 2011; Petriglieri & Obodaru, 2018) are inextricably linked; both drive important outcomes in organizations. In spite of these close connections, however, very little empirical or theoretical work has attempted to theorize the separate but interacting roles of identity and meaningfulness. For example, work on callings (Schabram & Maitlis, 2017) and organizational identification (Ashforth & Mael, 1989; Pratt, 1998) have provided two tentative pathways for how meaningful work and identity can be connected. Nevertheless, several theoretical questions remain: how are meaningfulness and identity linked? Is identity a necessary part of meaningfulness (or vice versa)? What mechanisms link the two? We would like to bring together researchers on identity and meaningful work to address this intersection. The purpose of this panel symposium is to engage a group of illustrious panelists in a discussion around (1) panelists' interpretation of how one might influence the other or be a necessary condition; (2) challenges in linking these two concepts; (3) possible avenues for research theoretically and empirically - e.g. measurement, quantitative, qualitative research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]