Identity assimilation and social networks in organizations: an empirical study of social identities across multiple organizational targets

Individual identities emerge through membership in multiple categories and social groups. The process of identification underlying individual affiliation decisions is therefore central in our understanding of identity formation. In this paper we argue that network-based social processes affect identification of individuals with the organization. In this paper we test this argument and report clear evidence of identity assimilation: the identity of individuals within organizations tends to become similar to the identities of their network partners. Because organizations are hierarchical systems it is important to attend to the possibility that the effects of social networks are not uniform across hierarchical levels. In this work we show that the effects of social networks vary systematically across possible identification targets that organizational members confront.