Desired and Feared Identities and Their Role in Occupational Identity Regulation

Abstract This paper extends theory by showing how occupational identity regulation operates jointly through both desired and feared identities which, in combination, enforce normative control. Taking a narrative identity perspective and drawing on an ethnographic and interview‐based study of veterinarians, we make three principal contributions to our understanding of identity regulation. First, we explain how, in high surveillance contexts, occupational members construct not just positively valenced desired identities but also negatively valenced feared identities, and how feared identities are antagonistic foils to desired ones that enhance their appeal. Second, we analyse how self‐discipline is exerted through dual processes of self‐examination: prideful talk that affirms desired identities and guilt‐ridden talk which casts doubt on their attainment and spurs auto‐correction. Third, we demonstrate how conformist identity work which (re)produces occupational identities through desire and fear reduces people's scope for resistance. This research highlights identity work that is non‐supportive of the (desired) self and how an appreciation of feared in addition to desired identities is vital to understand fully the tensional nature of occupational selves.