Developing Professional Identity: From Methods to Messages

This presentation focuses upon the ways in which the interactions between practitioners’
professional work and lives, and the extent to which they are able to manage changes in
these can affect their sense of professional identity.
Drawing on examples from four related research projects, we will discuss the influencing and
mediating factors which interact positively and/or negatively on identity at different career
stages. We also aim to illustrate, through two key themes, how identity is an important
determinant in influencing practitioners’ work/life balance, well-being and effectiveness.
Theme one focuses on the evolution of professional identity – for example, we found that
a dichotomy of thinking in relation to identity and status frequently led to an ‘identity
struggle’ and the evolution into a new kind of practitioner in order to overcome this struggle
and work effectively within a particular context. Theme two examines the ways in which
professional identity is associated with other concepts – for example, commitment, job
satisfaction, career phase, environment and culture.
Finally, we will relate the combined findings of these projects to policy, showing how
research has had an impact on shaping changes relating to practitioner development,
effectiveness and school improvement.