The Oxford handbook of organizational identityMichael G. Pratt, Majken Schultz, Blake E. Ashforth, and Davide Ravasi (Eds.), New York: Oxford University Press, 2018, 528 pages, $40.00 paperback.
这本514页的手册汇集了组织身份领域多位学者的反思与见解，全面回顾了该领域30年来的研究进展，并探讨了未来研究机会，适合初次接触或希望深入了解组织身份文献的学者。
Weighing in at 514 pages, The Oxford Handbook of Organizational Identity represents a formidable set of backward- and forward-looking reflections on the state of a literature that has become a mainstay of organizational scholarship. As someone who finds himself in the occasional position of needing to recommend to others a “starting point” for engaging the topic of organizational identity (heretofore labeled as “OI”), I can think of few better resources than this edited volume from Michael Pratt, Majken Schlultz, Blake Ashforth, and Davide Ravasi. The volume attempts to create a “big tent” discussion about the status of the OI literature, drawing on the insights of longtime contributors to research on OI as well as from scholars who bring new and fresh perspectives to this body of work. The volume reflects the wide-ranging theoretical perspectives of the contributors and thus paints a picture of a literature that while progressing beyond its early definitional debates has not, however, produced a strong (or overly-restrictive) paradigm. Indeed, some might look at this result and lament that three decades of research has failed to produce strong and apparent consensus. Yet, I for one celebrate the volume's efforts to recognize and support the complexity of a scholarly endeavor that is reflective of an equally complex set of organizational phenomena. As Charles Perrow once famously noted (1994:194), “We may get shot because of our complex message, but simplifying it would make lackeys of us all…” In reading through this handbook of OI and reflecting on its contributions, I attempted to place myself in the position of those to whom I would be immediately inclined to recommend the book—for example, a first-time explorer of the topic of OI. Such an individual, I imagine, will be interested not only in learning about the literature but also in discerning where there might still be opportunities to contribute. As to the former objective, the volume offers an invaluable and thorough review. The literature focused on OI is most evidently at a stage of great maturity, and a book of this sort offers essential reading for those looking to move beyond a superficial understanding of its key concepts, relationships, and evolution. As to the latter objective of identifying opportunities for contributing to the OI literature, however, I believe the book paints both a bleak but also a hopeful image. I imagine that, to some, this hefty volume of world-class contributors, each of whom have deftly summarized and extended the insights of OI, will prove intimidating. In light of our field's frequent insistence upon identifying theoretical gaps within longstanding research paradigms like OI, the volume's comprehensiveness may leave some with the impression that the gaps have become increasingly obscured and narrow. And the subsequent conclusion may be that we are left then with mere attempts to apply our theoretically rich understanding of generic OI patterns, such as regards the stability and change of central and distinctive aspects of organizations to increasingly specific contexts, such as organizations from east London involved in producing British cuisine. While an application such as this might offer important opportunities for highbrow dinner conversation for those of us in the London area, it is less obvious how it would push forward our understanding of organizations more generally. So then, has three decades of research on OI left large enough research gaps for scholars hoping to carve out long-term and high-impact research agendas? If read through the lens of the typical “gap-finding” approach we often teach students, one might be inclined to despairingly conclude that the answer is “no.” To the careful reader, however, I believe the book presents a more sanguine depiction of future research opportunities. It does so in at least two ways. First, the volume exposes OI as a nexus concept, “something that links things together, as well as a central meeting place” (p. 4). As such, researchers interested in the wide array of organization theories including but not limited to sensemaking, institutions, strategy, leadership, innovation, and change can find a shared anchor point in the literature on OI. And because OI serves as a nexus concept, it also serves as fertile ground for scholarly innovation. As we know from longstanding research on innovation (e.g., Tushman, 1977), producing novel insight requires gathering and transmitting information from different and previously bounded domains. Thus, those aspiring scholars willing to engage more deeply in the conversation of OI will find themselves naturally operating in a boundary role, facilitating the flow of ideas and scholarly relationships that pass through this nexus and offer opportunity for innovation. Indeed, many of the articles published in this volume are examples of this fruitful cross-pollination. And thus, by highlighting and consistently engaging these puzzling questions, this volume on OI helpfully clarifies how interesting scholarly opportunities arise when we start to shift away from “gap finding” to instead reflect on age-old and persistent tensions. As the editors remark (p. 15), “If OI tells us anything, it is that while the questions remain, the answers are in flux.” Big questions, it seems, do not go away. And the OI literature allows us to engage those big questions. So then, take heart when you read through this volume in search of opportunities for new research on the topic of OI. Yes, the volume is comprehensive, but such comprehensiveness is in service of exposing the many questions of lasting importance, not in shutting those questions down. Needless to say, I decidedly recommend The Oxford Handbook of Organizational Identity, and not just for first-time explorers of the OI literature. This book offers an equally valuable resource for those in our field with more extensive touch points related to the OI literature. Research on OI is now over three decades old, and this sustained development of the field is a recognition of both the complexity and importance of the subject matter. As such, the editors have done our field a great service by coalescing a range of eclectic contributions, which taken together simplify the complexity, highlight the importance, and provide a thoughtful roadmap for the next decade of OI research.