Professional Identity of Undergraduate Occupational Therapy Students
Throughout the development of an individual, their identity, or how they see themselves, frequently changes. An important part of identity formation in adolescents is the development of professional identity, which is how they perceive themselves in a professional context. The establishment of a str...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Eastern Kentucky University
2020-01-01
|
| Series: | Journal of Occupational Therapy Education |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.26681/jote.2020.040102 |
| _version_ | 1818936047055142912 |
|---|---|
| author | Harrison Gray Kay Colthorpe Hardy Ernst Louise Ainscough |
| author_facet | Harrison Gray Kay Colthorpe Hardy Ernst Louise Ainscough |
| author_sort | Harrison Gray |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Throughout the development of an individual, their identity, or how they see themselves, frequently changes. An important part of identity formation in adolescents is the development of professional identity, which is how they perceive themselves in a professional context. The establishment of a strong professional identity has been linked to life satisfaction, psychological well-being and success in one’s chosen career. The aim of this study was to identify the extent of professional identity development in second year undergraduate occupational therapy students. As part of an assessment task, students were asked to describe why they chose occupational therapy, how they saw themselves as occupational therapists, and to describe their role models. A thematic analysis of consenting students’ (n=59) responses was performed and each student ranked based on the strength of their professional identity. The results indicated that the stage of professional identity development of second year occupational therapy students varied considerably, despite them being at the same stage of their program. A quarter of students had advanced professional identity, while almost two-thirds were still developing. Students also provided detailed insights regarding the factors influencing their professional identity. Students with strong, positive influences regarding their choice to study occupational therapy were likely to have strong role models. Given its impact on well-being and career success, it is essential to identify students who may be at risk of poor professional identity. The methods developed here could be used to identify such students and to evaluate the success of educational interventions aimed at them. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-20T05:29:51Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-bfee8d63aeef4984b1591d422b27e3fc |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2573-1378 2573-1378 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-20T05:29:51Z |
| publishDate | 2020-01-01 |
| publisher | Eastern Kentucky University |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Occupational Therapy Education |
| spelling | doaj.art-bfee8d63aeef4984b1591d422b27e3fc2022-12-21T19:51:47ZengEastern Kentucky UniversityJournal of Occupational Therapy Education2573-13782573-13782020-01-014110.26681/jote.2020.040102Professional Identity of Undergraduate Occupational Therapy StudentsHarrison Gray0Kay Colthorpe1Hardy Ernst2Louise Ainscough3University of Queensland, AustraliaUniversity of Queensland, AustraliaUniversity of Queensland, AustraliaUniversity of Queensland, AustraliaThroughout the development of an individual, their identity, or how they see themselves, frequently changes. An important part of identity formation in adolescents is the development of professional identity, which is how they perceive themselves in a professional context. The establishment of a strong professional identity has been linked to life satisfaction, psychological well-being and success in one’s chosen career. The aim of this study was to identify the extent of professional identity development in second year undergraduate occupational therapy students. As part of an assessment task, students were asked to describe why they chose occupational therapy, how they saw themselves as occupational therapists, and to describe their role models. A thematic analysis of consenting students’ (n=59) responses was performed and each student ranked based on the strength of their professional identity. The results indicated that the stage of professional identity development of second year occupational therapy students varied considerably, despite them being at the same stage of their program. A quarter of students had advanced professional identity, while almost two-thirds were still developing. Students also provided detailed insights regarding the factors influencing their professional identity. Students with strong, positive influences regarding their choice to study occupational therapy were likely to have strong role models. Given its impact on well-being and career success, it is essential to identify students who may be at risk of poor professional identity. The methods developed here could be used to identify such students and to evaluate the success of educational interventions aimed at them.https://doi.org/10.26681/jote.2020.040102professional identityoccupational therapyrole modelscareer choice |
| spellingShingle | Harrison Gray Kay Colthorpe Hardy Ernst Louise Ainscough Professional Identity of Undergraduate Occupational Therapy Students Journal of Occupational Therapy Education professional identity occupational therapy role models career choice |
| title | Professional Identity of Undergraduate Occupational Therapy Students |
| title_full | Professional Identity of Undergraduate Occupational Therapy Students |
| title_fullStr | Professional Identity of Undergraduate Occupational Therapy Students |
| title_full_unstemmed | Professional Identity of Undergraduate Occupational Therapy Students |
| title_short | Professional Identity of Undergraduate Occupational Therapy Students |
| title_sort | professional identity of undergraduate occupational therapy students |
| topic | professional identity occupational therapy role models career choice |
| url | https://doi.org/10.26681/jote.2020.040102 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT harrisongray professionalidentityofundergraduateoccupationaltherapystudents AT kaycolthorpe professionalidentityofundergraduateoccupationaltherapystudents AT hardyernst professionalidentityofundergraduateoccupationaltherapystudents AT louiseainscough professionalidentityofundergraduateoccupationaltherapystudents |