This study investigates the phenomenon of intensive remedial
identity work by exploring responses to the trauma and stigma of adult
bullying at work. It analyses the narratives of 20 workers who reported being
bullied at work, in which they talk about persistent emotional abuse and
their shifting, intensifying identity work in response. The following specifi c
questions are explored: (a) what threats to identity does workplace bullying
trigger?; (b) what are the types and remedial goals of identity work?; (c) what
is the processual nature of this identity work? Analysis resulted in seven
inter-related types of identity work: fi rst-and second-level stabilizing,
sensemaking, reconciling, repairing, grieving and restructuring. Each of
these was associated with specifi c identity threats and a constellation
of remedial goals. Comparative analysis among self-narratives suggested
that identity work occurred in three approximate phases associated with
abuse onset, escalation and cessation. Findings extend understanding of
intensive remedial identity work in the face of persistently traumatic and
stigmatizing organizational experiences.