Professional identity within inter-agency activity: A contribution from discursive psychology

Aim Grappling with professional identity is an arduous task for professionals working across inter-agency boundaries, especially for educational psychologists. Whilst it is accepted that professional identity influences work behaviour, there is a gap within the literature in understanding professional identity for professionals working across inter-agency boundaries. This study aims to provide an original perspective of how inter-agency professionals use language to construct professional identities, how these identities operate and to what psychological ends. Method This two-phase study adopted discursive psychology methods, participant observations and stimulated recall interviews, to explore how individuals draw on discursive resources to construct relevant professional identities during naturalistic inter-agency dialogue. Findings Participants drew on a range of linguistic features and discursive devices to construct three professional identities: their individual identity within a group, their collective identity, and identities of the ‘other’. Participants’ investment in certain identity positions enabled them to orientate to a range of social actions in their interaction. Limitations This study is limited in its focus by its theoretical and methodological assumptions, and in its generalisability due to its design. These limitations highlight new avenues for further research. Conclusions The study illuminates the multiplicity of identities, which seems unlikely to be explained by a fixed, biological cause and monologic reasoning. Rather, professional identities, like other social identities, are discursive and dialogic. Belonging to professional groups is not biologically determined, and thus professional identity is socially constructed, fragmented and fluid based on dialogic encounters with others.