The discourse of professional identity in child and adolescent mental health services
Background: Child and adolescent mental health teams have traditionally been constructed using multidisciplinary teams of different professions. Current workforce policy in mental health, however, stresses team function and the skills and competences required to fulfil that function which leads to a...
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| Format: | Thesis (University of Nottingham only) |
| Language: | English |
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2008
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| Online Access: | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/10504/ |
| _version_ | 1848791089632247808 |
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| author | Baldwin, Laurence James |
| author_facet | Baldwin, Laurence James |
| author_sort | Baldwin, Laurence James |
| building | Nottingham Research Data Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Background: Child and adolescent mental health teams have traditionally been constructed using multidisciplinary teams of different professions. Current workforce policy in mental health, however, stresses team function and the skills and competences required to fulfil that function which leads to a questioning of professional identity within those teams.
Aims: This study aims therefore to define how professional identity is constructed in the policy discourse and amongst a sample of current practitioners in mental health teams.
Methodology: This study uses a linguistic method, Critical Discourse Analysis, to question whether functional approaches based on role theory are appropriate when identity work discourse has overtaken role theory as a way of thinking about professional working. It uses elements of role theory and identity work thinking, informed by postmodernist theorists such as Pierre Bourdieu, to look at the need for the underlying conceptual frameworks that professional training and socialisation bring.
Findings: By analysing the current policy discourse, and a sample of practitioner discourse on the subject, the study shows that there is a need for the professional identity of individuals to be better addressed and understood. It examines the importance of the underlying conceptual frameworks that inform the skills and competences and what these frameworks bring to team functioning. The study also questions the way in which policy uses linguistic capital as a change agent to bring about workforce modernisation in child and adolescent mental health teams.
Conclusions: The study highlights the need for professional groups to maintain their professional identity by being better able to articulate the contribution they make to team functioning by virtue of their conceptual frameworks. These are shown to inform the way in which individuals use their skills and competences to care for service users and their carers. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T18:22:58Z |
| format | Thesis (University of Nottingham only) |
| id | nottingham-10504 |
| institution | University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T18:22:58Z |
| publishDate | 2008 |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | nottingham-105042025-02-28T11:08:32Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/10504/ The discourse of professional identity in child and adolescent mental health services Baldwin, Laurence James Background: Child and adolescent mental health teams have traditionally been constructed using multidisciplinary teams of different professions. Current workforce policy in mental health, however, stresses team function and the skills and competences required to fulfil that function which leads to a questioning of professional identity within those teams. Aims: This study aims therefore to define how professional identity is constructed in the policy discourse and amongst a sample of current practitioners in mental health teams. Methodology: This study uses a linguistic method, Critical Discourse Analysis, to question whether functional approaches based on role theory are appropriate when identity work discourse has overtaken role theory as a way of thinking about professional working. It uses elements of role theory and identity work thinking, informed by postmodernist theorists such as Pierre Bourdieu, to look at the need for the underlying conceptual frameworks that professional training and socialisation bring. Findings: By analysing the current policy discourse, and a sample of practitioner discourse on the subject, the study shows that there is a need for the professional identity of individuals to be better addressed and understood. It examines the importance of the underlying conceptual frameworks that inform the skills and competences and what these frameworks bring to team functioning. The study also questions the way in which policy uses linguistic capital as a change agent to bring about workforce modernisation in child and adolescent mental health teams. Conclusions: The study highlights the need for professional groups to maintain their professional identity by being better able to articulate the contribution they make to team functioning by virtue of their conceptual frameworks. These are shown to inform the way in which individuals use their skills and competences to care for service users and their carers. 2008 Thesis (University of Nottingham only) NonPeerReviewed application/pdf en arr https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/10504/1/LBaldwinThesis2008.pdf Baldwin, Laurence James (2008) The discourse of professional identity in child and adolescent mental health services. PhD thesis, University of Nottingham. Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services Professional identity identity work Critical Discourse Analysis Philosophy Bourdieu role theory policy discourse mental health nursing CAMHS |
| spellingShingle | Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services Professional identity identity work Critical Discourse Analysis Philosophy Bourdieu role theory policy discourse mental health nursing CAMHS Baldwin, Laurence James The discourse of professional identity in child and adolescent mental health services |
| title | The discourse of professional identity in child and adolescent mental health services |
| title_full | The discourse of professional identity in child and adolescent mental health services |
| title_fullStr | The discourse of professional identity in child and adolescent mental health services |
| title_full_unstemmed | The discourse of professional identity in child and adolescent mental health services |
| title_short | The discourse of professional identity in child and adolescent mental health services |
| title_sort | discourse of professional identity in child and adolescent mental health services |
| topic | Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services Professional identity identity work Critical Discourse Analysis Philosophy Bourdieu role theory policy discourse mental health nursing CAMHS |
| url | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/10504/ |