Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology (2004), 77, 115–123 © 2004 The British Psychological Society www.bps.org.uk Short research note A single-item graphic scale for the measurement of organizational identification Boas Shamir 1 * and Ronit Kark 2 1 Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Hebrew University, Israel 2 Departments of Psychology and Sociology, Bar-Ilan University, Israel We offer a single-item graphic scale for the measurement of identification with organizations and organizational units. The scale is based on conceiving of identification in terms of distance or overlap between entities in a cognitive space. We present results from five samples regarding the reliability and validity of the scale. The construct of organizational identification (OID) has attracted considerable attention (e.g. Ashforth & Mael, 1989; Dutton, Dukerich, & Harquail, 1994; Pratt, 1998). OID is important because it has substantial consequences at both the individual and the organizational level. Research has shown that OID is linked with extra-role prosocial behaviours, monetary donations to the organization, length of service and intentions to quit (Mael & Ashforth, 1992, 1995; O’Reilly & Chatman, 1986; Wan Huggins, Riordan, & Griffeth, 1998). Theoretically, OID has also been linked with job satisfaction, motivation, performance, loyalty to the organization, cooperative behaviours and organizational citizenship behaviours (Pratt, 1998; Shamir, 1990). Moreover, OID is considered to be one of the ways by which organizations direct and coordinate their members’ behaviours, because identification increases behaviours that are congruent with the organizational identity and values (Cheney, 1983). There- fore, organizations invest considerable efforts in fostering identification among their members. Increasing members’ identification with the organization is also one of the effects attributed to transformational or charismatic leaders (Kark & Shamir, 2002; Kark, Shamir, & Chen, forthcoming; Shamir, Zakay, Breinin, & Popper, 1998). The purpose of this brief report is to present a short and simple scale for the measurement of identification with the organization or with an organizational subunit, such as a department or a work team. We present results obtained from three large samples and two smaller samples showing that the scale has acceptable distribution of responses, test–retest reliability and convergent and concurrent construct validity. *Correspondence should be addressed to Boas Shamir, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, The Hebrew University, Jerusalem, 91905, Israel (e-mail: boas.shamir@huji.ac.il). 115