ABSTRACT
This chapter presents Carl Weick’s theory of sensemaking in organisations. Weick argues that every situation, termed ‘changing ecology’, is experienced through a filter of previous experiences and values. Therefore, only selected cues from the changing ecology are stored in the retention of the sensemaker. These fragmentary, individual perceptions of reality and previous experiences are used as a basis for deciding how to react to the changing ecology. The sensemaking perspective is therefore enacted in actions and reactions. Because of this, sensemaking is always retrospective. Identity as an aspect of retention is also central to the theory. The chapter argues that in research interviews, participants sometimes engage in Discursive Sensemaking, i.e., they verbalise their sensemaking perspective and construct their identities by associating themselves with or dissociating themselves from others in their work environment. They do so through socially shared as well as personally held stories, which can be seen as idealised retrospective accounts of employee’s work life. These stories can be seen as the cornerstone of employee professional identity construction.
