Dr Heather Carpenter Glenys Ker

Capable NZ

CDANZ 2014

Identity, learning and growing

professional identity

Who do you think you are?

What is your identity?

How do you define yourself?

At a social gathering what do you say

when someone asks you what you

do?

Sense of self

Strong?

Possibly just a few

For many: often fragile, uncertain, confused

Self Identity

..the self as reflexively understood by the individual

in terms of his or her biography, portraying ‘not just

who we are but what we make of

ourselves’(Giddens )

Autobiography is at the heart of self identity – a

narrative where the self is made explicit……

When we examine our ‘selves’ closely – careers,

roles, values, we develop the self assessment and

reflection skills that grow a strong sense of self.

Identity as compass

Identity has been broadly defined as “how a

person sees himself or herself”, and in relation

to career, as the “internal compass” which

keeps the person headed on the path most

suited to their values and goals (Hall, 2002)

Identity and career

Strongly interwoven…..(Cochran, 1990)

Reflects the individuals sense of who they are,

who they wish to be, their hopes, dreams fears

and frustrations …..(Young and Collins, 2000)

Self-Identity

The most important facet of career development

The ‘who we are’, self discovery aspect

“Career development, from the individuals point of

view, is a continuing quest for what one truly is,

and what one wants to do.”

Hall (2002)

Professional Identity

Professional identity is defined as the relatively

stable and enduring constellation of attributes,

beliefs, values, motives, and experiences in terms

of which people define themselves in a

professional role (Ibarra, 2000).

Professional identity

Historically, professional identity was viewed as a

single construct- more recently identity scholars

have paved the way to examine the way to

consider the multiple personal and social identities

that make up professional identity ( Kram,

Wasserman and Yip, 2012).

At the intersection

Professional identity formation

can be framed within the context of social identity

is a systematic way of evaluating, identifying and

organising the perception of self (Erikson, 1968)

May concern group interactions in the workplace

and relates to how people compare and

differentiate themselves from other professional

groups

As career practitioners, we have been exploring

this….

Relating to professions

‘Professional identity is one of the multiple social

identities an individual holds. Socialisation into

the professional community provides a sense of

stability, belonging, and values, and it reduces

ambiguity.

The profession as an institution provides the

scripts on which individual professionals

draw in their daily practice.’

Professional Identity

Relating to individuals

‘Every professional has a professional identity – the

question is how conscious and purposefully chosen

it is. It is impossible to imagine a professional

without a professional identity, but it is possible that

professionals cannot articulate their professional

values and commitments hence cannot

purposefully draw on the core of their identity.’

Trede, F. (2012)

How is it developed?

Professional identity development involves the

acquisition of new role behaviours and new views

of the self …….

(Think about the CV as an identity tool – what can

happen in the discussion of skills, abilities….)

Multiply (x 10) the effects of facilitated reflection

on roles and learning …a conscious and

purposeful process

Identity awareness/growth

‘self-identity is self-awareness, the extent to which

one has a clear understanding of one’s own values,

goals, needs, interests, abilities and purpose. Thus

identity growth is not just knowing yourself but

knowing how to learn more about yourself. Of

course we need feedback and help from others to

do this. Thus much of identity development is a

relational process.” (Hall 2002)

Process of facilitated reviews of

learning

Involves a rigorous self-assessment process

Demands critical analysis

Is intensively reflective and autobiographical

Includes a portfolio process

Heightens self awareness

(process happens at undergraduate, graduate and

doctoral level – Professional Practice degrees)

i.e all factors present for identity growth

Reflection – on Self In the work that we do through CAPABLENZ

…supporting people to gain qualifications via

assessment of prior learning the first step is a Review

of Your Learning ie

Unpack your early influences, beliefs, views of self in

the context of growing up – what are some of the things

that spring to mind when you take yourself back there?

What was important to you? Why? What did you

believe? Who were role models and why? Want to be

and do? ie understanding of self, characteristics,

motivations, beliefs, values

Reflection on Work (Work Based Learning)

The next stage is ‘unpacking those areas of your life

where you have worked in and learnt about, made a

difference to, had key learning and developed

capabilities’ – what was your role, what did you do, how

did you learn, what was profound (great learning – good

and bad), what came naturally and why?

Then thinking about and giving voice to how that work

has impacted on you – and the connection to theory –

what were the connections, relevancy, areas where you

‘got it’, made sense of, understood – and applied that to

your practice?

Learning Plan

The learning through these projects should be

relevant for your future career development, should

build on what you already know in your proposed

field of study/work/career, and be valuable to you

and your future. To help you decide what to learn,

you could identify the sort of knowledge and skills:

that will make you better at your current role, or the

career you hope to have in the future;

that are required to make you a better professional;

that are necessary for you to grow and develop,

solve current problems, etc.

Model or Framework of Practice

The final stage is therefore pulling it all together,

connecting and interweaving the themes of your

personal and professional life – are they congruent,

do they fit, are you what you have always been

(notwithstanding life and experiences and gaining

more knowledge), what are the threads that form the

rich fabric of your life?

This is the ‘summing up’ of who you are, why you

are, what is important (values/beliefs), what areas of

work you want to work in (context), and why, and

what informs your practice. By this stage – sense of

self emerging strongly ……

Graduates’ words I’ve discovered through the reflective process that

while I understand human resource processes very

well, my knowledge goes much further. I’m an

advocate, a manager, a business person, a

communicator and most significantly an educator. By

combining all of these skill sets I’m able to be

effective as a leader. I also know that I could learn

and develop more in all those areas. Two of those

areas are of significant interest for me in my own

career development, they are areas I’d like to strive

towards mastery in. As I progressed through the APL

process I discovered that I could write, reflect and

research in a critical way.

Graduates’ words In assessment 1, I explored my values and my view of

the world. I identified threads that have been entwined

throughout my working life, my experiences and my

drivers. It was only through writing that essay that I

discovered that coaching and educating were so

important in what I do. My desire to change things, to

step up and to influence was uncovered. My desire for

a fair society that respects both the planet and those

within it was teased out. Assessment 2 explored my

skills. With my prior learning assessment earlier this

year I have extended the range of what I thought I

could do. I am now peering over the opportunity and

learning horizon.

Graduates’ words

What did I learn? I learned that I knew a lot more

than I thought I did, which has helped me understand

my own employability – helped me to be able to

clearly articulate who I am and what I can do and why.

I learned that once you have experienced work it is

not hard to then engage with theory – what is hard is

to engage with theory when you don’t have a base to

practice on (how silly is that) – being able to reflect on

and understand my practice, then apply it to theories

was a transformational process … now that is

learning.

Graduates’ words

I was amazed to realise that my work incorporated many

areas of specialised work – social services, career

practice, management and leadership – I am not just a

career practitioner, I am many things. Therefore my

model of practice is more than having an understanding

of career practice, it is demonstrating my knowledge and

skill in management, my beliefs about leadership and my

understanding of the social services environment. I can

be defined by having a multi-faceted interconnected and

integrated approach to a range of contexts. My

professional practice is ……

Graduates’ words

I wanted to say thank you for all your help and

support to get me through the Career Practice

qualification. I found your approach very aligned

to my own way of learning style which made the

whole exercise very easy, but more importantly

enjoyable and enlightening.

I was quite scornful of my past teachers in my

BIO, but you are a really good ‘teacher’ because

you bring out the best in people, you show them

how to re-learn, re-engage, re-invent yourself.

Transformational process

We find this process transformational for people,

invariably bringing a new view of the self……,

Discovering one’s gifts, talents and sense of self

offers an incredible source of strength to walk the

career journey (Aboriginal Human Resources

Council , 2007)

At the end of the learning journey

Our learners often say they now feel they have a

professional identity which has increased their self

confidence and self efficacy and this has integrated

into their working roles and lives….

Research

Glenys – Doctorate in Professional Studies

(Adult Learning), Middlesex University UK

Heather – looking at ways to explore this topic

further, interested in the ‘marriage’ of career

development, learning and professional identity

growth

References

Cochran, L. R. (1990). Narrative as a paradigm for career research. In R. A. Young, & W.A.

Borgen (Eds.), Methodological approaches to the study of career (pp. 71-86). New York:

Praeger Publishers.

Giddens, A. (1991) Modernity and Self Identity. Stanford: Stanford University Press.

Hall, D.T. (2002) Careers in and Out of organisations. California: Sage Publications

Kram, K., Wasserman, I.C., &Yip, J. (2012) Metaphors of Identity and Professional Practice:

Learning from the Scholar-Practitioner. Journal of Applied Behavioural Science 48 (3),304-

341

Trede, F.(2012).Role of work-integrated learning in developing professionalism and

professional identity. Asia-Pacific Journal of Co-operative Education, 2012,13,159-167

Young, R. & Collin, A. (2000). Introduction: framing the future of career. In A. Collin, & R.

Young (Eds.), The future of career (pp. 1-17). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.