Doctrinal but non-dysphoric ritual can increase identity fusion in Japanese workplaces

Collective rituals are known to serve important social functions across both sacred and secular domains. This study begins by testing whether the Western finding that workplace rituality enhances group sociality generalizes to the Japanese context. An online survey of 254 Japanese employees successfully replicated prior research, confirming that perceived rituality is positively associated with job meaningfulness and organizational citizenship behavior. Expanding on these findings, we also examined the impact of rituals on identity fusion by integrating the Modes of Religiosity theory and investigating cognitive and affective factors such as frequency, arousal, and valence. Our results reveal that doctrinal factors—characterized by high frequency and semantic significance—significantly strengthen identity fusion. In contrast, negative valence associated with dysphoria was found to inhibit it. These findings call into question the efficacy of high-pressure organizational practices; while distressing rituals are frequently reported in corporate environments, they may paradoxically undermine collective cohesion. Instead, effective organizational integration might be fostered by repetitive rituals that are grounded in shared meaning.