9: Identity

So I tried to read Wardle’s article in its entirety but about four pages in, I found myself rereading every sentence about ten times before I processed what she was trying to say. It wasn’t until I got to page 524 that something really caught my attention about the topics she addressed. Identity is a big part of belonging to any job. Doctors, teachers, musicians, professional athletes, and every other job you can think of will involve different identities associated with it. Whether we think so or not, identity plays an essential role in belonging to a group of people that share similar values.

Warble mentions a sociologist named Ettiene Wenger. Wenger had a theory of communities of practice where he described workplace enculturation. He focused on identity within the workplace setting and other activities. Wenger described identity as a “negotiated experience… a layering of events of participation and reification by which our experience and its social interpretation inform each other.” What I make of this quote is that our identity in the workplace that we belong in is a long-time occurrence that develops over time. We obtain our identity by participating and being actively involved in what is required of us, rather than just watching someone else and learning from them. Of course, our interactions with the people in a work setting help but they are not all that we need in order to obtain our identity in our job.

According to Wenger, in order for newcomers to find their “own unique identities” within new organizations, they must choose levels and types of engagement and modes of belonging. These three modes of belonging included engagement, imagination, and alignment.

Engagement basically describes how newcomers and old-timers of the job interact with each other to develop “interpersonal relationships.” I’m not entirely sure what this means, but if I had to guess the “interpersonal relationships” are more important to the newcomers in that a relationship with more experienced members of their workforce could really work in their favor as they’re still learning to be an expert in what they’re doing. Wenger also explains that even though engagement can be positive, it could also lack in mutuality, meaning that the newcomers wouldn’t really get the full respect from the old-timers and therefore a sense of marginality is created especially towards the newcomer. I’m studying to become a physical therapist in the future, and this is definitely a career where I will need to engage with more experienced therapists in order to become better at my job. Even after obtaining higher education in the field, I can’t just become an amazing physical therapist without actually learning from those who are more experienced.

Imagination is pretty much that- newcomers imagining themselves transcending, and “creating new images of the world and self.” Wenger points out that while imagination can lead to a positive mode of belonging, it can also “be disconnected and ineffective.” With imagination, newcomers could potentially interchange their experience in the community as competence. A scenario I thought of when I read this quote that relates to my field of study is someone who has volunteered their time learning in a hospital or clinic setting prior to actually getting a job. Even if they have volunteered for a long time it doesn’t automatically mean that they’ll be a superior physical therapist than others when they finally get a job. This person might hold the mindset that they’re already better than other newcomers just because they’ve volunteered and learned the workings of a physical therapist in the past. In turn, this might lead to arrogance in the workplace and a sense of superiority that will blind and prevent them from becoming better at their job.

Finally, there is alignment. Alignment requires those involved to basically find a common ground and “reconcile diverging perspectives.” This could be a good thing in the long run, but Wenger mentions that alignment often violates a person’s sense of self and crushes their identity. What I get from this is that maybe sometimes someone’s personal values and beliefs don’t completely align with what their work requires them to do and alignment is necessary in order to completely identify with their job. They have to sacrifice what they believe in just to fit in and to be able to identify with the others in their career.