Professional identity, work environment and sociomaterial practices

Work appears a significant dimension of identity formation : organizational identity, as well as values and social status inferred from work enable the individual to answer the question « Who am I », both for himself and in front of others (Kreiner, Hollensbe, & Sheep, 2006; Pratt, Rockmann, & Kaufmann, 2006; Sainsaulieu, 1985). The perception of the workplace as a « stage » for identity enactement, in the sense of Goffman (1959) has produced interesting recent research (Ibarra, 1999; Ibarra & Barbulescu, 2010). However the role of materiality in identity work remains under-investigated. Yet, identity representations often rely on a series of material artefacts which provide resources for these enactments. Our research analyses the role of artefacts (both technological and non technological) and the related sociomaterial practices, in the constitutions and enactment of professional identity of social actors. Our unit of analysis for this research is an occupational community of train drivers (Salaman, 1974; van Maanen & Barley, 1984).