Loosening Categorical Thinking: Extending the Terrain of Theory and Research on Demographic Identities in Organizations

Abstract

Traditional systems for categorizing individuals into demographic groups have become increasingly misaligned with how individuals understand their own demographic identities. For organizational scholars, considering this misalignment has significant implications for theory and empirical research on demographic diversity in organizations; misalignments between traditional categorization systems and individuals’ demographic identities also have important implications for managers who seek to create inclusive work environments. In this article we offer a conceptual framework articulating four types of demographic identities that are misaligned with traditional categorization systems, which are not adequately recognized in existing organizational diversity research or in organizations: intracategorical multiplicity, intracategorical mobility, intracategorical uncertainty, and identities that are acategorical in nature. We build from this framework to theorize that individuals who identify demographically in these nonnormative ways may experience categorization threat, a particular form of identity threat infrequently studied in diversity scholarship, because their needs for identity autonomy and identity legitimacy are likely to be frustrated in organizations whose categorization systems are based on traditional assumptions. We also theorize about how variations in individuals’ demographic identities and in organizational contexts can affect experiences of categorization threat.