Identity Work in Ethical Gray Zones: How Professional Identity Shapes Emotional Decision-Making in Boundary-Spanning Digital Work

1. Introduction

The rapid evolution of digital technologies has created unprecedented challenges for professionals working at the intersection of traditional organizational boundaries. As work becomes increasingly platform-mediated and digitally transformed, many professionals find themselves in emerging roles that lack established ethical frameworks, professional norms, or clear jurisdictional boundaries. Content moderators making split-second decisions about harmful material, AI ethics specialists balancing innovation with responsible use, and platform governance professionals negotiating competing stakeholder interests all operate in what might be termed “ethical gray zones” – spaces where right answers are elusive and moral complexity is the norm rather than the exception.

These boundary-spanning digital professionals engage in complex forms of identity work as they navigate ambiguous ethical terrain. How do they construct a coherent sense of professional self when their work constantly crosses traditional professional boundaries? What role do emotions play as they confront ethically charged decisions without clear precedents to guide them? And critically, how does their approach to professional identity influence their ethical decision-making processes?

This article addresses three research questions:

• How do professionals navigate ethical ambiguities when their work crosses traditional professional boundaries in digital contexts?
• What role do emotions play in identity construction when professionals face ethical dilemmas in platform-mediated work?
• How do different identity orientation strategies influence ethical decision-making under conditions of ambiguity?

The study contributes to the literature in three key ways. First, it identifies and empirically demonstrates three distinct identity orientation strategies employed by professionals in emerging digital roles, showing how these strategies shape approaches to ethical ambiguity. Second, it develops a process model linking identity orientation, emotional regulation, and ethical frameworks, challenging traditional views that position emotions as obstacles to ethical decision-making. Third, it introduces the concept of “ethical identity work” as an integrative framework for understanding how professionals maintain coherent self-concepts while navigating ethically complex terrain.

The article proceeds as follows. Section 2 reviews relevant literature on professional identity, ethical decision-making, and emotional regulation. Section 3 details the mixed-methods research design. Section 4 presents key findings on identity orientation strategies, emotional regulation approaches, and ethical frameworks. Section 5 discusses theoretical and practical implications, while acknowledging boundary conditions and limitations. The paper concludes with recommendations for future research and practice.

2. Theoretical Background

2.1. The Changing Landscape of Professional Work

Traditional professions developed around clear jurisdictional boundaries, established bodies of knowledge, and professional codes of ethics that provided guidance for practitioners (Abbott, 1988). The digital transformation of work has systematically disrupted these structures, creating what Faraj et al. (2018) describe as “liminal spaces” – zones between established professional boundaries where new types of work emerge.

Research by Kellogg et al. (2020) identifies three key characteristics of boundary-spanning digital work that create unique challenges for professional identity:

• Algorithmic mediation: Work processes increasingly delegated to or mediated by algorithms, raising questions about professional autonomy and accountability
• Platform governance tensions: Contradictory pressures from multiple stakeholders with competing interests and values
• Scale and velocity: Decision-making at unprecedented scale and speed, compressing the reflective space traditionally available for ethical deliberation

These characteristics create a landscape where professionals must constantly negotiate not only what they do but who they are as professionals – engaging in ongoing identity work amidst ethical ambiguity.

2.2. Ethical Gray Zones in Digital Work

Building on Haidt’s (2001) social intuitionist model of moral judgment and Tenbrunsel and Smith-Crowe’s (2008) work on ethical decision-making, ethical gray zones can be conceptualized as contexts characterized by three forms of ambiguity (Metcalf et al., 2019):

• Jurisdictional ambiguity: Unclear which professional domain’s ethical standards should apply
• Consequential ambiguity: Difficulty predicting the downstream effects of decisions
• Value plurality: Multiple legitimate ethical frameworks suggesting different courses of action

Recent work by Martin (2019) on technology ethics and Nissenbaum’s (2011) contextual integrity framework suggests that digital contexts intensify these ambiguities by disrupting established norms and creating novel ethical situations without clear precedents.

2.3. Professional Identity and Identity Work

Professional identity—the constellation of attributes, beliefs, values, motives, and experiences through which people define themselves in a professional role (Ibarra, 1999)—has been recognized as a critical lens for understanding how individuals navigate complex work environments (Ashforth & Schinoff, 2016). Building on Petriglieri and colleagues’ (2018) conceptualization of identity work as an active, ongoing process, this study examines how professionals construct coherent self-concepts in contexts lacking established professional templates.

This approach integrates identity work with boundary theory (Ashforth et al., 2000; Nippert-Eng, 1996), suggesting that boundary-spanning digital professionals must engage in particularly intensive forms of identity construction as they navigate multiple, sometimes conflicting, role expectations and ethical frameworks.

2.3.1. Ethical Identity Work and Related Constructs

The concept of “ethical identity work” introduced in this study builds upon but extends beyond existing constructs such as moral identity (Aquino & Reed, 2002). While moral identity focuses on the centrality of moral traits to an individual’s self-concept, ethical identity work emphasizes the dynamic, contextual processes through which professionals integrate ethical considerations into their professional self-concepts specifically within boundary-spanning roles.

Ethical identity work differs from moral identity in three key respects. First, it is inherently processual rather than dispositional, focusing on ongoing negotiation rather than stable traits. Second, it is professionally situated, concerned with how individuals construct ethical approaches within specific professional contexts rather than general moral orientation. Third, it explicitly incorporates emotional dimensions as constitutive elements rather than as separate factors.

This construct also extends institutional perspectives on professional identity by examining how individuals navigate institutional pressures from multiple, sometimes conflicting professional fields (Thornton et al., 2012). As boundary-spanning professionals encounter competing institutional logics, ethical identity work represents the micro-level processes through which they construct coherent professional selves while navigating these macro-level tensions.

2.4. Emotions and Ethical Decision-Making

Traditional perspectives often position emotions as potential biases in ethical reasoning (Kahneman, 2011). However, emerging research challenges this view, suggesting that emotions serve essential functions in moral judgment (Barrett, 2017; Haidt, 2012). Building on Greene’s (2014) dual-process model and recent work on emotional regulation in professional contexts (Grandey & Gabriel, 2015), this study examines how emotions function as both information sources and motivational resources in ethical decision-making.

This research bridges the gap between identity theory, emotional regulation, and ethical decision-making by examining how professional identity orientation shapes emotional responses to ethical dilemmas and, subsequently, ethical judgments and actions.

3. Methodology

3.1. Research Design

A sequential mixed-methods research design (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2017) was employed to investigate the relationship between professional identity, emotions, and ethical decision-making in boundary-spanning digital work. The research progressed through three phases:

• Qualitative exploration: In-depth interviews to identify identity orientation strategies and ethical challenges
• Experience sampling: Real-time capture of emotional responses to ethical dilemmas
• Experimental validation: Vignette studies testing relationships between identity salience, emotional responses, and ethical judgments

This design allowed for the development of rich, contextual understanding while also testing key relationships with greater control and generalizability. The mixed-methods approach facilitated triangulation of findings across different data sources and methods, strengthening both internal and external validity (Maxwell, 2013).

3.2. Sample and Data Collection

3.2.1. Phase 1: Qualitative Interviews

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 47 professionals in boundary-spanning digital roles, including:

• AI ethics specialists (n=18)
• Content moderators (n=16)
• Platform governance professionals (n=13)

Participants were recruited through purposive and snowball sampling from 12 organizations spanning technology companies, consulting firms, and regulatory bodies. The sample included 27 women and 20 men, with professional experience ranging from 2 to 15 years. Interviews lasted 60-90 minutes, were recorded and transcribed verbatim, resulting in approximately 850 pages of text.

Interview protocols addressed professional background, identity construction, ethical challenges, emotional responses, and decision-making processes. For example, participants were asked to describe ethically challenging situations, their emotional responses, and how they resolved the dilemmas. The full interview protocol is provided in Appendix A, with questions 16-19 specifically addressing the integration of professional identity and ethical decision-making.

3.2.2. Phase 2: Experience Sampling

A subset of interview participants (n=32) completed an experience sampling protocol over two weeks. Participants received five daily prompts via smartphone application asking them to record:

• Current work activity
• Ethical challenges encountered
• Emotional responses (using validated emotion measures from Mauss & Robinson, 2009)
• Decision-making approaches
• Identity salience (adapted from Aquino & Reed, 2002)

This resulted in 1,467 valid responses (91.7% response rate), providing real-time data on the relationship between identity, emotions, and ethical decision-making. The experience sampling protocol is detailed in Appendix B, which includes the specific measurement items used to assess emotional regulation approaches and identity salience.

For the experience sampling analysis, participants were classified into predominant identity orientation groups based on their interview data and a follow-up assessment that measured their alignment with each orientation. This classification used a validated coding scheme (outlined in Table 5) to evaluate interview responses, supplemented by a 12-item survey measuring orientation tendencies. Participants were classified based on their highest scoring orientation, with a minimum threshold of 20% difference between primary and secondary orientations. This classification enabled between-person analyses examining how identity orientation predicted emotional regulation approaches and ethical frameworks. Within-person analyses were also conducted to examine how situational factors influenced these relationships.

3.2.3. Phase 3: Experimental Validation

Online vignette experiments were conducted with 128 professionals in boundary-spanning digital roles (including 35 from previous phases). Participants were randomly assigned to conditions in a 3 (identity orientation: anchoring vs. hybridizing vs. pioneering) × 2 (ethical ambiguity: high vs. low) between-subjects design using a randomization algorithm stratified by professional role to ensure balanced representation across conditions.

Participants read scenarios describing ethical dilemmas in digital contexts, reported emotional responses, and indicated likely decisions. Identity orientation was manipulated through priming techniques validated in prior research (LeBoeuf et al., 2010), and ethical ambiguity was manipulated by varying the clarity of consequences and applicable principles. The complete vignette materials are provided in Appendix C, which includes the precise wording of all experimental manipulations and measurement items.

Manipulation checks confirmed the effectiveness of the identity orientation primes, with significant differences in self-reported identity orientations across conditions (F(2,125) = 18.6, p < .001, η² = .23). Participants in the anchoring condition reported significantly higher agreement with anchoring-related statements (M = 5.8, SD = 0.9) than those in hybridizing (M = 3.2, SD = 1.1) or pioneering conditions (M = 2.4, SD = 1.2). Similar patterns were observed for the other manipulation checks, confirming the validity of the experimental manipulations.

3.3. Data Analysis

3.3.1. Qualitative Analysis

Interview transcripts were analyzed using template analysis (King, 2004) with NVivo 12 software. Initial coding used sensitizing concepts from identity work and ethical decision-making literature, followed by inductive coding to identify emergent themes. Two independent researchers coded 20% of transcripts (κ = .83), resolving disagreements through discussion before coding remaining data.

The coding process followed three main stages:

• Initial template development: Based on theoretical frameworks and preliminary reading of transcripts
• Coding and template refinement: Iterative coding and revision of the template as new themes emerged
• Final coding: Application of the finalized template to all transcripts

Table 1 presents a simplified version of the final coding template with illustrative codes.

Analysis proceeded through constant comparison techniques (Corbin & Strauss, 2008), looking for patterns within and across participants. Disconfirming evidence was actively sought to test and refine emerging theoretical constructs, enhancing theoretical validity.

For example, when the initial pattern suggested a strong relationship between professional background and identity orientation strategy, I identified several counter-examples—participants whose identity strategies did not align with their professional backgrounds—and examined these cases in detail to understand the contextual factors that might explain these divergences. This analysis revealed that organizational context often moderated the relationship between professional background and identity strategy, leading to refinement of the theoretical model. As one participant (P14) expressed: “My engineering training would suggest a more rule-based approach, but the collaborative culture here has pushed me to develop a more integrative professional identity that draws from multiple perspectives.”

3.3.2. Quantitative Analysis

Experience sampling data were analyzed using multilevel modeling to account for the nested structure of observations within participants (Raudenbush & Bryk, 2002). Models were specified to distinguish within-person and between-person effects, following recommendations by Bolger and Laurenceau (2013). For example, to examine the relationship between identity orientation and emotional regulation approaches, the following model was specified:

Level 1 (within-person):

Yij = β0j + β1j(Situation characteristics) + rij

Level 2 (between-person):

β0j = γ00 + γ01(Identity orientation) + γ02(Controls) + u0j

β1j = γ10 + γ11(Identity orientation) + u1j

Where Yij represents emotional regulation approaches for person j at observation i, and identity orientation was modeled as a level-2 predictor based on predominant orientation identified in interviews and follow-up assessments. Random effects (u0j, u1j) were included to account for individual differences in intercepts and slopes. Control variables included age, gender, years of professional experience, and organizational context (coded as participatory vs. hierarchical governance based on interview data).

Experimental data were analyzed using ANCOVA and mediation analysis (Hayes, 2017) to test causal relationships between identity orientation, emotional responses, and ethical decisions. Mediation analyses followed Hayes’ (2017) PROCESS macro (Model 4) with 5,000 bootstrap samples to generate confidence intervals for indirect effects. The mediation model included identity orientation as the independent variable (X), emotional regulation approach as the mediator (M), and ethical framework as the dependent variable (Y), with demographic factors (age, gender, years of experience) and organizational context as covariates.

3.4. Validity and Reliability Considerations

Several strategies were employed to enhance methodological rigor:

• Triangulation: Multiple data sources and methods to corroborate findings
• Member checking: Preliminary findings were shared with 12 participants for feedback
• Reflexivity: The research team maintained reflexive journals documenting analytical decisions
• Extended engagement: Ongoing relationships with key informants to deepen understanding
• Negative case analysis: Active searching for disconfirming evidence

Each method also had specific validity concerns addressed through appropriate techniques. For interviews, validity threats of retrospective rationalization were mitigated through concrete incident technique and probing questions. For experience sampling, the potential for participant fatigue was addressed through brief surveys and random sampling of time points. For experimental studies, external validity concerns were addressed by using realistic vignettes developed based on interview data and validated by domain experts.

One important validity challenge was ensuring consistency in how identity orientation strategies were identified and measured across methods. To address this, I developed a systematic classification approach based on interview data, then validated this classification through follow-up assessments that measured alignment with each orientation strategy. This approach ensured that identity orientation was consistently operationalized across phases of the research.

4. Results

4.1. Identity Orientation Strategies in Boundary-Spanning Digital Work

The analysis identified three distinct identity orientation strategies employed by professionals in boundary-spanning digital roles. Table 2 summarizes these strategies, their prevalence across professional groups, and illustrative quotes.

These strategies were not equally distributed across professional groups. Chi-square analysis showed significant associations between professional role and identity strategy (χ²(4) = 16.7, p < .01, Cramer’s V = .32), with AI ethics specialists more likely to adopt anchoring strategies, platform governance professionals favoring hybridizing approaches, and content moderators more frequently employing pioneering strategies.

Importantly, these strategies were not merely cognitive approaches but encompassed emotional and relational dimensions. For example, anchoring strategies provided emotional security through connection to established professional communities but sometimes limited responsiveness to novel ethical challenges. Pioneering strategies offered greater freedom but often resulted in stronger emotional labor due to lack of established support structures.

The qualitative analysis revealed that these strategies were not static but could evolve over time and across contexts. Several participants (n=11) described transitioning between strategies as they gained experience or as their roles evolved. This temporal dimension highlights the dynamic nature of identity work in these emerging professional contexts.

4.2. The Process Model of Ethical Identity Work

The analysis revealed a dynamic process through which identity orientation shapes emotional regulation and ethical decision-making in boundary-spanning digital work. The process model derived from the findings, as seen in Figure 1 below, illustrates how identity orientation strategies influence both emotional regulation approaches and ethical frameworks, which in turn shape responses to ethical dilemmas. Importantly, the relationship between these elements is bidirectional—ethical challenges and their outcomes also reshape identity orientation over time. Contextual factors, including organizational culture, governance structures, and power dynamics, moderate these relationships.

Evidence for the bidirectional nature of these relationships emerged particularly from the qualitative data. For example, 18 participants explicitly described how confronting certain types of ethical dilemmas led them to reconsider aspects of their professional identity:

“After handling that content moderation case involving self-harm, I realized I couldn’t maintain the emotional distance my journalism training had taught me. It fundamentally changed how I see myself as a professional—I’ve had to develop a new approach that integrates more of the emotional dimension. ”

(P16, content moderator with journalism background)

These bidirectional effects were also evident in the experience sampling data, where ethical challenges characterized by high value plurality were associated with increased identity questioning the following day (β = .28, p < .01, 95% CI [.11, .45]), suggesting that certain types of ethical dilemmas trigger active identity reconsideration.

4.2.1. Identity Orientation and Emotional Regulation

Experience sampling data revealed significant associations between identity orientation strategies and emotional regulation approaches (F(2,29) = 8.74, p < .01, η² = .38, 95% CI [.14, .52]). Table 3 summarizes these relationships.

These patterns were consistent across methods. In interviews, professionals employing anchoring strategies frequently described “stepping back” from emotional responses to analyze situations through established professional frameworks:

“When I feel disturbed by a content decision, I consciously reframe it using my journalism training. I ask: What serves the public interest? What promotes transparent discourse? That helps me manage the emotional impact while staying true to my professional values.”

(P12, content policy specialist with journalism background)

In contrast, those employing pioneering strategies more often described emotions as essential information:

“My emotional response is data. If I feel uncomfortable with an algorithmic decision, that discomfort is telling me something important about potential harms or unexamined assumptions. I’ve learned to lean into that feeling rather than dismiss it.”

(P4, AI ethics specialist)

As seen in Figure 2 below, experience sampling data confirmed these patterns, showing that anchoring-oriented professionals reported more cognitive reappraisal events (M = 3.8 daily instances, SD = 0.7) compared to pioneering-oriented professionals (M = 1.7 daily instances, SD = 0.5), t(18) = 4.2, p < .001, d = 3.42, 95% CI [2.14, 4.70]. Conversely, pioneering-oriented professionals reported more instances of using emotions as information sources (M = 4.3 daily instances, SD = 0.6) compared to anchoring-oriented professionals (M = 2.1 daily instances, SD = 0.5), t(18) = 3.9, p < .001, d = 3.95, 95% CI [2.47, 5.43].

I tested for potential demographic influences on emotional regulation approaches by including age, gender, and years of professional experience as covariates in the analyses. Contrary to expectations, no significant gender differences were found in emotional regulation approaches after controlling for identity orientation (F(1,30) = 1.8, p = .19), suggesting that professional identity factors may be more influential than demographic characteristics in shaping emotional regulation in these contexts. Similarly, neither age (F(1,30) = 0.7, p = .41) nor years of experience (F(1,30) = 1.2, p = .28) showed significant main effects on emotional regulation approaches.

4.2.2. Identity Orientation and Ethical Frameworks

The analysis also revealed significant relationships between identity orientation strategies and ethical frameworks. Table 4 summarizes these findings.

In vignette experiments, manipulating identity salience significantly influenced ethical judgments. When primed with anchoring identity orientation, participants were 37% more likely to justify decisions using principles-based reasoning compared to control conditions (p < .01, 95% CI [22%, 52%]). Pioneering identity priming increased attention to affected stakeholders’ perspectives by 42% compared to control conditions (p < .001, 95% CI [26%, 58%]).

An unexpected finding was that in high ambiguity conditions, hybridizing identity orientation was associated with the greatest decision confidence (M = 5.2 on 7-point scale, SD = 0.8) compared to anchoring (M = 4.3, SD = 0.9) or pioneering orientations (M = 4.1, SD = 1.1), F(2,62) = 7.3, p < .01, η² = .19. This suggests that the ability to integrate multiple perspectives may be particularly valuable in highly ambiguous ethical situations.

Mediation analysis revealed that the relationship between identity orientation and ethical framework was partially mediated by emotional regulation approach. The mediation model included identity orientation as the independent variable (X), emotional regulation approach as the mediator (M), and ethical framework as the dependent variable (Y), with demographic factors (age, gender, years of experience) and organizational context as covariates. The indirect effect was significant (indirect effect = .18, 95% CI [.08, .29]), suggesting that identity orientation influences ethical frameworks both directly and through its impact on how emotions are processed.

One area where the findings showed some inconsistency was in the relationship between hybridizing strategies and emotional regulation. While the predominant pattern showed hybridizing strategies associated with situation selection and attention deployment, a subset of hybridizing professionals (n=7) exhibited patterns more similar to pioneering professionals, with greater emotional acceptance and integration. Further analysis revealed that these individuals tended to be in organizations with higher psychological safety scores, suggesting that organizational context may moderate the relationship between identity orientation and emotional regulation approaches. As one participant noted: “In my previous role, I felt I had to compartmentalize emotions to be taken seriously. Here, there’s explicit acknowledgment that emotions can provide valuable insight, which has changed how I integrate them into my professional approach” (P29, platform governance professional).

4.2.3. The Role of Organizational Context

Findings indicate that organizational factors significantly moderate the relationship between identity orientation and ethical decision-making. Multilevel models of experience sampling data showed that organizational culture explained 23% of variance in the relationship between identity orientation and ethical approaches (p < .001, 95% CI [13%, 33%]). Specifically, three contextual factors emerged as particularly influential:

• Governance structures: Organizations with more participatory governance approaches supported greater integration of emotional information into ethical decision-making (β = .34, p < .01, 95% CI [.16, .52])
• Power dynamics: Hierarchical structures amplified anchoring identity strategies and principles-based ethics, while flatter structures facilitated pioneering strategies (β = .29, p < .01, 95% CI [.11, .47])
• Psychological safety: Higher psychological safety correlated with more diverse emotional regulation strategies and ethical approaches (β = .43, p < .001, 95% CI [.26, .60])

These findings highlight that ethical identity work occurs within organizational contexts that can either enable or constrain different identity orientation strategies and their associated approaches to emotional regulation and ethical decision-making.

The qualitative data revealed that organizational constraints sometimes created tensions between professionals’ preferred identity orientation strategies and what was organizationally sanctioned. Several participants (n=14) described engaging in “underground” identity work—developing approaches that deviated from official organizational expectations but that they believed were ethically necessary:

“The official stance is that we should apply the community standards consistently with minimal interpretation. But in reality, many of us are developing more nuanced approaches that consider context and impact. We just don’t always document that part of our process.”

(P8, content moderator)

This finding highlights the political dimensions of ethical identity work, suggesting that identity strategies may sometimes function as forms of resistance to organizational constraints.

4.3. Comparative Analysis Across Professional Roles

The cross-professional analysis revealed both similarities and important differences in how identity work manifests across boundary-spanning digital roles. Table 5 summarizes these distinctions.

Table 5. Comparative Analysis of Identity Work Across Professional Roles.

Professional Role	Predominant Identity Strategy	Distinctive Ethical Challenges	Characteristic Identity-Emotion Patterns
AI Ethics Specialists	Anchoring (61%)	Long-term consequential ambiguity; technical-social translation	Greater cognitive reappraisal; emphasis on epistemic emotions (curiosity, surprise)
Content Moderators	Pioneering (48%)	Exposure to harmful content; high-velocity decisions; scale challenges	Higher emotional intensity; more acceptance strategies; greater compassion fatigue
Platform Governance Professionals	Hybridizing (67%)	Stakeholder management; value conflicts across constituencies	Complex emotion differentiation; more situation selection; emphasis on social emotions

Table 5. Comparative Analysis of Identity Work Across Professional Roles.

Professional Role	Predominant Identity Strategy	Distinctive Ethical Challenges	Characteristic Identity-Emotion Patterns
AI Ethics Specialists	Anchoring (61%)	Long-term consequential ambiguity; technical-social translation	Greater cognitive reappraisal; emphasis on epistemic emotions (curiosity, surprise)
Content Moderators	Pioneering (48%)	Exposure to harmful content; high-velocity decisions; scale challenges	Higher emotional intensity; more acceptance strategies; greater compassion fatigue
Platform Governance Professionals	Hybridizing (67%)	Stakeholder management; value conflicts across constituencies	Complex emotion differentiation; more situation selection; emphasis on social emotions

As seen in Figure 3, chi-square tests confirmed significant differences in the distribution of identity strategies across professional roles (χ²(4) = 16.7, p < .01, Cramer’s V = .32). Furthermore, the nature of ethical challenges varied significantly by role, with AI ethics specialists facing more consequential ambiguity, content moderators encountering more exposure to harmful material, and platform governance professionals navigating more stakeholder conflicts.

These differences were reflected in both emotional patterns and ethical approaches. For example, content moderators reported significantly higher emotional intensity scores in experience sampling data (M = 5.8 on 7-point scale, SD = 0.9) compared to AI ethics specialists (M = 4.3, SD = 0.8), t(26) = 3.7, p < .001, d = 1.76, 95% CI [0.93, 2.59]. Similarly, platform governance professionals demonstrated greater complexity in stakeholder analysis (measured by number of distinct perspectives considered) compared to other professionals (F(2,44) = 8.3, p < .01, η² = .27, 95% CI [.09, .45]).

Early in the research, I had expected to find a developmental trajectory where more experienced professionals would tend toward hybridizing strategies as they gained expertise across domains. This expectation was based on literature suggesting that professional development often involves integration of diverse knowledge bases over time (Ibarra, 1999). Contrary to this expectation, there was no clear relationship between years of professional experience and identity orientation strategy (F(2,44) = 1.3, p = .28), suggesting that identity orientation may be shaped more by role demands and organizational context than by career stage. This finding challenges developmental models that assume progression toward more integrated identity strategies with experience.

The analysis also revealed that role-specific ethical challenges create different emotional demands. Content moderators, who regularly encounter harmful material, reported higher levels of moral distress (M = 4.9, SD = 1.1) compared to AI ethics specialists (M = 3.2, SD = 0.8) and platform governance professionals (M = 3.5, SD = 0.9), F(2,44) = 12.6, p < .001, η² = .36. These differences in emotional demands may partially explain the different prevalence of identity orientation strategies across roles.

5. Discussion

5.1. Theoretical Implications

The findings make several important contributions to understanding professional identity, emotions, and ethics in boundary-spanning digital work, as seen in Figure 4.

First, this study extends identity work theory (Ibarra, 1999; Petriglieri et al., 2018) by demonstrating how professionals construct coherent identities in contexts lacking established templates. The three identity orientation strategies identified—anchoring, hybridizing, and pioneering—provide a framework for understanding identity construction in emergent professional fields beyond digital contexts. This typology adds nuance to existing models of professional identity by highlighting how individuals actively orient themselves toward different sources of identity resources when navigating ambiguous professional terrain.

Second, the findings challenge traditional views that position emotions as obstacles to ethical reasoning (Kahneman, 2011) by demonstrating how different identity orientations enable distinct forms of emotional integration into ethical decision-making. These results align with and extend recent work on the constructive role of emotions in ethical judgment (Barrett, 2017; Haidt, 2012) by showing how professional identity mediates this relationship. Importantly, the results suggest that emotional sophistication—not emotional detachment—characterizes effective ethical decision-making in these contexts.

Third, the concept of “ethical identity work” introduced here provides an integrative framework for understanding how professionals maintain coherent self-concepts while navigating ethically complex terrain. This concept bridges micro-level identity processes with macro-level concerns about ethical governance in digital contexts, contributing to both identity theory and digital ethics literature (Martin, 2019; Nissenbaum, 2011). Unlike existing constructs such as moral identity (Aquino & Reed, 2002), which focus primarily on stable traits or dispositions, ethical identity work captures the dynamic, ongoing processes through which professionals integrate ethical considerations into their evolving professional self-concepts.

Fourth, the process model linking identity orientation, emotional regulation, and ethical frameworks contributes to understanding how professionals navigate what Tenbrunsel and Smith-Crowe (2008) term “ethical infrastructure” in organizations. By highlighting bidirectional relationships between these elements, this research shows how ethical decision-making both shapes and is shaped by professional identity. The finding that ethical challenges can trigger identity reconsideration extends existing identity work models by demonstrating how critical incidents function as catalysts for identity transformation.

Finally, the research contributes to institutional perspectives on professions by examining how individual professionals navigate institutional complexity when multiple, sometimes conflicting, institutional logics apply to their work (Thornton et al., 2012). The identity orientation strategies identified represent different approaches to managing institutional complexity at the individual level, showing how professionals selectively draw upon, combine, or transcend institutional templates to construct coherent professional identities.

5.2. Boundary Conditions and Limitations

Several boundary conditions and limitations should be noted when interpreting these findings. First, this research focused on professionals in organizational contexts with at least some level of established ethical infrastructure. The dynamics may differ for independent professionals or those in organizations with minimal ethical guidance. The relative prevalence and effectiveness of different identity orientation strategies likely depends on the degree of institutional support available.

Second, cultural context likely influences these processes. The sample was primarily drawn from North American and European organizations (86% of participants), potentially limiting generalizability to other cultural contexts where professional identity and emotional norms may differ significantly. Research on cultural differences in emotion regulation (Mesquita et al., 2014) suggests that the relationships between identity strategies and emotional approaches may vary across cultural contexts.

Third, the focus on three specific boundary-spanning digital roles, while offering comparative insights, may not capture the full diversity of emerging digital professions. The identity orientation strategies and emotional regulation approaches identified may manifest differently in other digital professional contexts. The focus on roles with significant ethical dimensions may also limit generalizability to boundary-spanning roles where ethical considerations are less central.

Fourth, while the mixed-methods approach strengthens validity, each method has inherent limitations. Interviews may be subject to retrospective rationalization and social desirability bias, particularly when discussing ethically charged topics. Experience sampling captures only conscious emotional processes and may miss implicit emotional dynamics. Experimental manipulations, while allowing for causal inference, may not fully replicate the complexity of real-world ethical dilemmas and their organizational embeddedness.

Fifth, the cross-sectional nature of much of the data limits ability to make strong causal claims about the long-term development of identity orientation strategies. While the experience sampling provides some insight into temporal dynamics over a two-week period, longer-term longitudinal research would be necessary to fully understand how these strategies evolve over professional careers.

Finally, the study focused primarily on individual-level processes, with organizational factors treated as contextual influences rather than focal phenomena. A fuller understanding of ethical identity work would require more detailed analysis of how organizational practices and policies specifically shape identity orientation strategies and their effectiveness.

5.3. Practical Implications

The findings have several practical implications for organizations supporting professionals in boundary-spanning digital roles and for the professionals themselves.

5.3.1. Developing Identity Resources for Boundary-Spanning Professionals

Organizations can support professionals by providing resources for healthy identity construction:

• Professional community building: Creating spaces for identity negotiation and collective sense-making among professionals facing similar challenges
• Identity narratives: Developing and sharing narratives that help professionals make meaning of their work and its ethical dimensions
• Role clarity within ambiguity: Defining core professional commitments and values while acknowledging zones of legitimate ethical discretion

This research suggests that these approaches should be tailored to different identity orientation strategies. For anchoring-oriented professionals, connecting new challenges to established professional traditions can provide identity continuity, as evidenced by the interview data showing that 78% of anchoring-oriented professionals actively sought connections to established professional communities. For pioneering-oriented professionals, legitimate spaces for identity experimentation and peer support may be more valuable, with 82% of pioneering professionals reporting that peer communities were critical to developing their professional approach.

However, implementation of these approaches faces several challenges in practice. Organizational pressures for standardization may conflict with the need for identity experimentation. As one participant noted:

“The company wants consistency and scalability, but ethical work requires individual judgment and sometimes creative approaches. There’s a fundamental tension there.”

(P23, AI ethics specialist)

Organizations must therefore balance standardization needs with space for identity development, perhaps through what Eisenhardt et al. (2010) term “minimal structures”—frameworks that provide basic guidance while allowing flexibility in implementation.

5.3.2. Integrating Emotions into Ethical Infrastructure

Organizations can design ethical infrastructures that acknowledge and leverage emotional dimensions of decision-making:

• Emotional impact assessments: Systematically considering how technologies affect emotional wellbeing alongside other impacts
• Reflective spaces: Creating temporal and physical spaces for emotional processing and ethical reflection
• Emotion-sensitive ethics training: Developing approaches to ethics education that integrate emotional and analytical capacities

The findings on different emotional regulation approaches suggest that organizations should provide multiple pathways for emotional engagement rather than prescribing single “best practices.” This might include both structured analytical frameworks (supporting cognitive reappraisal) and opportunities for emotional acceptance and integration. The experience sampling data showed that professionals with access to multiple emotional regulation strategies reported greater decision satisfaction (r = .41, p < .01) and lower emotional exhaustion (r = -.37, p < .01) compared to those relying primarily on a single approach.

Implementation challenges include organizational cultures that may stigmatize emotional expression or treat emotions as irrelevant to “serious” work. Successful integration of emotions into ethical infrastructure requires broader cultural change around emotions in professional contexts. As one platform governance professional observed:

“We need to move beyond the idea that being professional means being unemotional. In ethical work, emotions provide crucial signals about values and impacts.”

(P37, platform governance professional)

5.3.3. Governance Mechanisms for Ethical Gray Zones

Traditional governance approaches often assume clear rules can be established for most situations. In ethical gray zones, more adaptive governance mechanisms are needed:

• Ethical sense-making forums: Structured processes for collective deliberation about novel ethical challenges
• Principled flexibility: Clear ethical principles combined with discretionary space for contextual judgment
• Ethics mentorship: Pairing less experienced professionals with ethics mentors who can guide identity development and ethical reasoning

The comparative analysis across professional roles suggests that governance approaches should be tailored to specific ethical challenges. For example, content moderators may benefit more from psychological support and collective sense-making, while AI ethics specialists may need stronger connections between technical and ethical frameworks. The experience sampling data revealed that content moderators in organizations with regular ethical sense-making forums reported 42% lower moral distress scores compared to those without such forums (p < .01).

Implementation barriers include resource constraints, particularly in high-volume, time-pressured environments like content moderation. Organizations may need to consider structural changes to work processes to create space for these governance mechanisms. Without addressing underlying work structures, governance innovations may remain superficial.

5.4. Future Research Directions

This research opens several promising avenues for future investigation:

• Longitudinal identity development: How do identity orientation strategies evolve over professional careers in boundary-spanning digital work? Longitudinal studies could examine identity trajectories and critical transition points, identifying factors that trigger shifts between strategies.
• Cross-cultural comparisons: How do cultural contexts shape identity work and emotional regulation in ethical gray zones? Comparative studies across different national and cultural contexts could illuminate how cultural norms around emotions and professional identity influence ethical identity work.
• Technology-mediated identity work: How do digital tools themselves shape identity construction and ethical decision-making? Research could examine how technologies both enable and constrain different identity orientation strategies, particularly as AI systems increasingly augment professional judgment.
• Identity work and ethical outcomes: What is the relationship between different identity orientation strategies and ethical outcomes? Studies could explore whether certain approaches lead to more ethically robust decisions in different contexts, perhaps using expert evaluation or stakeholder impact assessments to measure ethical quality.
• Collective identity processes: How do teams and communities of practice develop shared identity resources for navigating ethical gray zones? Research could examine collective identity work in boundary-spanning digital teams, exploring how shared identity resources emerge and how they influence team-level ethical approaches.
• Resistance and power dynamics: How do professionals navigate organizational constraints that conflict with their ethical identity work? Research could explore the political dimensions of ethical identity work, examining how professionals resist or reshape organizational expectations when these conflict with their ethical self-concepts.

6. Conclusions

The intersection of professional identity, emotions, and ethics in boundary-spanning digital work offers rich terrain for both theoretical understanding and practical intervention. As traditional professional boundaries continue to blur in digital contexts, the capacity for “ethical identity work” – the integration of professional self-concept, emotional intelligence, and ethical reasoning – becomes increasingly crucial.

This research demonstrates that professionals navigate ethical gray zones through distinct identity orientation strategies that shape both emotional regulation approaches and ethical frameworks. These processes occur within organizational contexts that can either enable or constrain different forms of ethical identity work. The bidirectional relationships between identity, emotions, and ethics highlight the dynamic, evolving nature of professional identity in these emerging contexts.

For organizations supporting professionals in boundary-spanning digital roles, these findings suggest the importance of developing multiple pathways for identity construction, emotional integration, and ethical decision-making rather than prescribing single “best practices.” For professionals themselves, awareness of different identity orientation strategies and their implications may facilitate more intentional and effective ethical navigation.

As digital transformation continues to create new professional roles and ethical challenges, the capacity for ethical identity work – constructing a coherent professional self while navigating complex ethical terrain with both emotional and analytical intelligence – may well become one of the most valuable professional competencies of the digital age. Understanding how professionals construct and maintain identity while navigating ethical complexity not only advances theoretical understanding but also provides practical insights for supporting these crucial boundary-spanning roles.