Social identification and sense of community among members of a co-operative company: the role of perceived organizational values

The aim of this study was to investigate, among members of a large cooperative company, the role of worker status (partner vs. employee), length of service, and cooperative values in influencing organizational identification (OI) and organizational sense of community (OSC). The study involved the totality of members of the cooperative (N = 805; 67.7% partners, 32.3% employees), who completed a self-administered questionnaire, measuring perceived cooperative values, OI, OSC, and, among partners, identification as a partner. The results indicate that partners, more than employees, perceived the cooperative as living up to its core values and scored higher on OI and OSC. The impact of worker status on OI and OSC was mediated by perceived cooperative values.