You are what you do: How work design shapes your identity and personality

When people are asked who they are, they often respond with what they do for a living, reflecting how central work is to our sense of identity. At the same time, growing research suggests that personality can evolve over time, shaped in part by what we repeatedly experience at work.

This raises important questions for both sides: what responsibility do organisations carry in designing work that shapes who people become? And how much agency do individuals have in shaping their own personality and identity development through the work they do?

In this webinar, join global experts from the book ‘Transformative Work Design: Synthesis and New Directions’ to explore the latest research and dynamic relationship between work design, identity and personality development:

• Professor Chia-Huei Wu (King’s College London)

• Professor Lena Wang (La Trobe University)

• Professor Giverny De Boeck (IESEG School of Management)

• Moderated by Dr Caroline Knight (Senior Lecturer, The University of Queensland )

Whether you are a researcher, an industry leader or a policymaker, this session invites you to reflect on the deeper influence of work in shaping who we are and who we become. Some key questions that will be addressed during the webinar:

• Does work design shape our identity and personality, or is it the other way around?

• Which work characteristics are most important in shaping people's work identity and personality?

• Can individuals actively shape their own identity and personality?

This webinar is organised by the Centre for Transformative Work Design at Curtin University and forms part of a dedicated series showcasing further insights from ‘Transformative Work Design: Synthesis and New Directions’, an edited academic book that synthesises contemporary work design research and theory, with contributions from 49 authors across 25 chapters.

About the Speakers

Dr Chia-Huei Wu is a Professor at King's Business School, King’s College London. His research focuses on person–environment dynamics and is organized into two main streams: Employee Proactivity (i.e., why, when, and how employees use their proactivity to change and improve the work environment) and Work and Personality Development (i.e., whether and how work experiences shape personality development). His work has been published in journals such as the Academy of Management Journal, Journal of Applied Psychology, Personnel Psychology, Journal of Management, and Human Resource Management. He previously served as an associate editor for the Journal of Management and is currently an associate editor for Personnel Psychology.

Dr Lena Wang is a Professor in Management at La Trobe University, Australia. Her research focuses on understanding and developing individual personality, fostering employee proactive behaviours, and promoting diversity and inclusion in organisations. She has published in journals including Journal of Applied Psychology, Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, Journal of Organizational Behavior, among others. She is the current Section Editor at Applied Psychology: An International Review and sits on the Editorial Board of Human Relations. Beside this, she works extensively with government and industry partners in Australia on a wide range of applied research projects.

Dr Giverny De Boeck is a Professor in People & Organization at IESEG School of Management. Her research focuses on how to help people thrive at work, studying work (re)design, identity, and talent management. She has published in journals including Journal of Organizational Behavior, Journal of Management Studies, Personnel Psychology, and Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology. Her research has also been featured recently in The Financial Times and The Conversation France. She has successfully acquired over €1,500,000 of international funding and has worked together with several companies for her research. She is always looking for new opportunities to work together with practice to make an impact beyond academia.

Moderator

Dr Caroline Knight is a Senior Lecturer in the University of Queensland Business School, Australia. Caroline’s research focuses on understanding how we can design work which is optimally healthy for individuals and organisations, with a particular focus on work design, remote and hybrid work, work redesign interventions, and well-being. Caroline has attracted funding worth over AUD$1,000,000, including leading a successful Australian Research Council Discovery Project worth over AUD$650,000 focusing on understanding how we can optimise hybrid work. Caroline currently serves as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Organizational Behavior and publishes in top-tier academic journals including the Journal of Organizational Behavior, Human Relations, Human Resource Management, the Journal of Vocational Behavior, and Work & Stress, as well as practitioner journals such as Harvard Business Review, and MIT Sloan Management Review. Caroline co-edited Transformative Work Design: Synthesis and New Directions, the book that launched this webinar series, which focuses on selected chapters in greater depth.