ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the authors outline a social identity approach to leadership and health in organisational contexts. This approach centres on understanding peoples self-concept at work and, in particular, the sense of self that they share with others in their team and organisation. The authors demonstrate that leaders play a pivotal role in building employees identification and, as a result, have an important influence on whether employees are vitalised and engaged or burnt out and disengaged. They outline an approach that identifies employees’ group-based social connections with others as a basis for resilience and vitality in the workplace. The model has been applied successfully to address key organisational challenges in diverse contexts ranging from managing the merging of academic departments to negotiation and the management of health care in military units. Moreover, the research informed by the social identity approach has shown that social identification has important consequences for peoples resilience as reflected in their health and wellbeing.
