The authors describe the processes through which inexperienced newcomers were socialized into the grueling work life onboard an Alaskan trawler. Newcomers were indoctrinated collectively by their more experienced coworkers and, through ritual debasement, were led to construct a social identity that glorified the ability to withstand onerous work demands. This process facilitated identification with the trawler and its culture but at the expense of many newcomers who were unable or unwilling to conform to the narrow persona of a compliant and diligent worker. The socialization process also created strong normative expectations of the captain that he subsequently appeared to ignore, thereby galvanizing dissent and turnover. Socialization thus provided the basis for identification and subsequent disidentification.
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