(Dis)identification as resilience in dirty volunteer work

<jats:sec> <jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Purpose</jats:title> <jats:p>The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of identification and disidentification processes of individuals who perform dirty work. Specifically, this study seeks to understand how identification creates resilience for volunteer workers to endure dirty work.</jats:p> </jats:sec> <jats:sec> <jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Design/methodology/approach</jats:title> <jats:p>The present study examines the resilience of volunteers in dirty work roles by interviewing 37 volunteers at an animal shelter and observing volunteers for 72 hours. The transcripts and field notes were analyzed using a grounded theory analysis.</jats:p> </jats:sec> <jats:sec> <jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Findings</jats:title> <jats:p>Volunteers construct multiple identifications and disidentifications as part of the resilience process to engage dirty and dangerous work. Volunteers switched between different (dis)identifications and communicatively reinforced (dis)identifications to overcome the physical and social stigma associated with their work.</jats:p> </jats:sec> <jats:sec> <jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Originality/value</jats:title> <jats:p>The present study extends research on resilience into a new context: dirty work. The findings bring into question assumptions regarding resilience and how a disruption is defined in the resilience literature. Disruptions are communicatively constructed and future studies should continue to research alternative contexts to study resilience labor.</jats:p> </jats:sec>