Abstract

This research is placed among the current studies discussing the relationship between working, education and modes of subjectification within the present context by means of specific phenomena in identity constructions as well as workplace learning processes. By means of a qualitative narrative research with in-depth interviews among urban workers in São Paulo, Brazil – a global South country, this paper aimed to identify and analyse their main narrative patterns of workplace learning modes and combined to corresponding narrative patterns of working identity construction previously proposed in the literature. A content analysis of the narratives of 40 participants, over 35 years of age, intentionally selected, with an approximate distribution of men and women, was carried out. The study identified three narrative patterns of workplace learning mode with five corresponding narrative patterns of working identity construction marked by two opposed movements, equally significant: search for stability and use of formal learning modes (organisational, professional and occupational identity narrative pattern); and search for flexibility and use of informal and relational learning modes (networking identity narrative pattern). Moreover, the interrelation between the modes has defined hybrid identity narrative patterns, and the absence of workplace learning modes has delineated transitory identity narrative patterns, which is understood as a transitional crisis. In conclusion, traditional models of identity construction coexist with flexible models, as well as formal learning modes coexist with informal and relational models. In both cases hybrid modes arise as a merger or a joint construction between pre-existing modes.

Keywords

References

• Alvesson, M. (2001). Knowledge work: Ambiguity, image and Identity. Human Relations, 54(7), 863-886. doi: 10.1177/0018726701547004
• Alvesson, M., & Willmott, H. (2002). Identity regulation as organizational control: Producing the appropriate individual. Journal of Management Studies, 39(5), 619-644. doi: 10.1111/1467-6486.00305
• Antunes, R. (2015). The new morphology of the working class in contemporary Brazil. Socialist Register, 51, 178-198.
• Arulmani, G. (2011). Striking the right note: The cultural preparedness approach to developing resonant career guidance programmes. International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance, 11, 79-93. doi: 10.1007/s10775-011-9199-y
• Bardin, L. (1977). L’analyse de contenu [Content analysis]. Paris: PUF.
• Bardon, T., Josserand, E., & Villesèche, F. (2015). Beyond nostalgia: Identity work in corporate alumni networks. Human Relations, 68(4), 583-606. doi: 10.1177/0018726714532967
• Billett, S. (2002). Critiquing workplace learning discourses: Participation and continuity at work. Studies in the Education of Adults, 34(1), 56-67. doi: 10.1080/02660830.2002.11661461
• Billett, S. (2010). Lifelong learning and self: Work, subjectivity and learning. Studies in Continuing Education, 32(1), 1-16. doi: 10.1080/01580370903534223
• Billett, S. R. (2014). Securing intersubjectivity through interprofessional workplace learning experiences. Journal of Interprofessional Care, 28(3), 206-211. doi: 10.3109/13561820.2014.890580
• Billett, S., Fenwick, T., & Somerville, M. (Eds.). (2007). Work, learning and subjectivity. New York, NY: Springer.
• Billett, S., Henderson, A., Choy, S., Dymock, D., Beven, F., Kelly, A., … Smith, R. (2012). Change, work and learning: Aligning continuing education and training. Working paper, NCVER, Adelaide, AU.
• Blustein, D. L. (2011). A relational theory of working. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 79(1), 1-17. doi: 10.1016/j.jvb.2010.10.004
• Bogenrieder, I., & Nooteboom, B. (2004). Learning groups: What types are there? A theoretical analysis and an empirical study in a consultancy firm. Organization Studies, 25(2), 287-313. doi: 10.1177/0170840604040045
• Boud, D., & Garrick, J. (2001). Understandings of workplace learning. In D. Boud & J. Garrick (Eds.), Understanding learning at work (pp. 1-11). London, UK: Routledge.
• Brockmeier, J., & Harré, R. (2003). Narrativa: problemas e promessas de um paradigma alternativo [Narrative: Issues of an alternative paradigm]. Psicologia: Reflexão e Crítica, 16(3), 525-535.
• Buchanan, R. (2015). Teacher identity and agency in an era of accountability. Teachers and Teaching, 21(6), 700-719. doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2015.1044329
• Burns, E. (2015). Re-imagining career transition: What help from typologies?. Journal of Sociology, 51(4), 933-949. doi: 10.1177/1440783313486191
• Carlson, D. (1998). Power/knowledge/pedagogy. New York, NY: Routledge.
• Carruthers, B., & Uzzi, B. (2000). Economic sociology in the new millennium. Contemporary Sociology, 29(3), 486-494. doi: 10.2307/2653936
• Castel, R. (2009). La montée des incertitudes [The increased uncertainty]. Paris: Seuil.
• Colley, H., James, D., Diment, K., & Tedder, M. (2003). Learning as becoming in vocational education and training: Class, gender and the role of vocational habitus. Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 55(4), 471-498. doi: 10.1080/13636820300200240
• Denzin, N. (1989). Interpretive biography. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
• Dubar, C. (1997). La socialisation, construction des identités sociales et professionnelles [Socialization, construction of social and professional identities]. Paris, France: Armand Colin.
• Edwards, R. (1998). Flexibility, reflexivity and reflection in the contemporary workplace. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 17, 377-388. doi: 10.1080/0260137980170604
• Espinoza-Herold, M., & González-Carriedo, R. (2017). Issues in Latino education. New York, NY: Taylor & Francis.
• Evetts, J. (2009). The management of professionalism: A contemporary paradox. In S. Gerwirtz, P. Mahony, I. Hextall, & A. Cribb (Eds.), Changing teacher professionalism: International trends, challenges and ways forward (pp. 19-30). Abingdon, UK: Routledge.
• Farnsworth, V., Kleanthous, I., & Wenger-Trayner, E. (2016). Communities of practice as a social theory of learning: A conversation with Etienne Wenger. British Journal of Educational Studies, 64(2), 139-160. doi: 10.1080/00071005.2015.1133799
• Fenwick, T. J. (2001). Tides of change: New themes and questions in workplace learning. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 92, 3-17. doi: 10.1002/ace.36
• Fenwick, T. J. (2007). Knowledge workers in the in‐between: network identities. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 20(4), 509-524. doi: 10.1108/09534810710760054
• Fenwick, T. J. (2008). Workplace learning: Emerging trends and new perspectives. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 119, 17-26. doi: 10.1002/ace.302
• Fenwick T. J. (2014). Assessment of professionals’ continuous learning in practice. In S. Billett, C. Harteis & H. Gruber (Eds.), International handbook of research in professional and practice-based learning. Cham, Switzerland: Springer.
• Fenwick, T., & Dahlgren, M. A. (2015). Towards socio‐material approaches in simulation‐based education: Lessons from complexity theory. Medical Education, 49(4), 359-367. doi: 10.1111/medu.12638
• Frosh, S. (2012). Psychosocial theory. In T. Teo (Ed.), Encyclopedia of critical psychology (pp. 144-149). New York, NY: Springer.
• Garrick, J. (2001). The dominant discourses of learning at work. In D. Boud, & J. Garrick (Eds.), Understanding learning at work (pp. 216-231). London, UK: Routledge.
• Geels, F. W., Kern, F., Fuchs, G., Hinderer, N., Kungl, G., Mylan, J., ... & Wassermann, S. (2016). The enactment of socio-technical transition pathways: A reformulated typology and a comparative multi-level analysis of the German and UK low-carbon electricity transitions (1990-2014). Research Policy, 45(4), 896-913. doi: 10.1016/j.respol.2016.01.015
• Gergen, K. J. (1991). The saturated self: Dilemmas of identity in contemporary life. New York, NY: Basic Books.
• Grote, G., & Raeder, S. (2009). Careers and identity in flexible working. Human Relations, 62(2), 219-244. doi: 10.1177/0018726708100358
• Guile, D., & Griffiths, T. (2000). Learning through work experience. London, UK: Lifelong Learning.
• Handley, K., Sturdy, A., Fincham, R., & Clark, T. (2006). Within and beyond communities of practice: Making sense of learning through participation, identity and practice. Journal of Management Studies, 43(3), 641-653. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-6486.2006.00605.x
• Hong, J., Greene, B., & Lowery, J. (2017). Multiple dimensions of teacher identity development from pre-service to early years of teaching: a longitudinal study. Journal of Education for Teaching, 43(1), 84-98. doi.org/10.1080/02607476.2017.1251111
• International Labour Organization (2017). World employment and social outlook: Trends 2017. Geneva, Switzerland: International Labour Organization.
• Karmel, A., Bound, H., & Rushbrook. P. (2013). Identity and learning for freelance adult educators in Singapore. Singapore, SG: Institute for Adult Learning.
• Kelchtermans, G. (2018). Professional self-understanding in practice: Narrating, navigating and negotiating. In P. A. Schutz, J. Hong & D. C. Francis (Eds.), Research on teacher identity (pp 229-240). Cham, Switzerland: Springer.
• Kirpal, S. (2004). Researching work identities in a European context. Career Development International, 9(3), 199-221. doi: 10.1108/13620430410535823
• Klotz, V. K., Billett, S., & Winther, E. (2014). Promoting workforce excellence: formation and relevance of vocational identity for vocational educational training. Empirical research in vocational education and training, 6(1), 1-20. doi: 10.1186/s40461-014-0006-0
• Krein, J. D. (2013). As transformações no mundo do trabalho e as tendências das relações de trabalho na primeira década do século XXI no Brasil [The changes in the working world and trends of labor relations in the first decade of the 21st century in Brazil]. Revista NECAT, 2(3), 6-25.
• Latour, B. (1993). We have never been modern. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
• Layder, D. (1998). Sociological practice: Linking theory and social research. London, UK: Sage.
• Marhuenda, F., Martínez, I., & Navas, A. (2004). Conflicting vocational identities and careers in the sector of Tourism. Career Development International, 9(3), 222-244. doi: 10.1108/13620430410535832
• Matthews, J. H, & Candy, P. C. (2001). New dimensions in the dynamics of learning and knowledge. In D. Boud & J. Garrick (Eds.), Understanding learning at work (pp. 47-64). London, UK: Routledge.
• Mazawi, A. E. (2007). ‘Knowledge society’ or work as ‘spectacle’? Education for work and the prospects of social transformation in Arab societies. In L. Farrell & T. Fenwick (Eds.), Educating the global workforce: Knowledge, knowledge work and knowledge workers. London, UK: Routledge.
• Mcnamee, S. (2012). From social construction to relational construction: Practices from the edge. Psychological Studies, 57(2), 150-156. doi: 10.1007/s12646-011-0125-7
• Mezirow, J. (1997). Transformative learning: Theory to practice. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 74, 5-12. doi: 10.1002/ace.7401
• Mezirow, J. (2018). Contemporary theories of learning. London, UK: Routledge.
• Mutch, A. (2003). Communities of practice and habitus: A critique. Organization Studies, 24(3), 383-401. doi: 10.1177/0170840603024003909
• Polkinghorne, D. E. (1988). Narrative knowing and the human sciences. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.
• Pratt, M. G., Rockmann, K. W., & Kaufmann, J. B. (2006). Constructing professional identity: The role of work and identity learning cycles in the customization of identity among medical residents. Academy of Management Journal, 49(2), 235-262. doi: 10.5465/amj.2006.20786060
• Rascován, S. (2017). Orientación vocacional con sujetos vulnerabilizados: Experiencias sociocomunitarias en los bordes [Career counseling with vulnerable subjects: Socio-community experiences at the edges]. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Noveduc.
• Ribeiro, M. A. (2015). Contemporary patterns of career construction of a group of urban workers in São Paulo (Brazil). Journal of Vocational Behavior, 88, 19-27. doi: 10.1016/j.jvb.2015.02.008
• Ribeiro, M. A. (2018). Reflecting upon reality in a psychosocial manner: Social constructionist challenges for the fields of career guidance and counseling (CGC) and work and organizational psychology (WOP). In A. M. Columbus (Ed.), Advances in psychology research. Vol. 132 (pp. 113-143). New York, NY: Nova.
• Ribeiro, M. A., Uvaldo, M. C. C., & Silva, F. F. (2016). Impact of gender relations on the narrative patterns of working identity constructions: A case study with Brazilian urban workers. Journal of Counsellogy, 5, 237-256.
• Santos, B. S. (2002). Toward a multicultural conception of human rights. In B. Hernandez-Truyol (Ed.), Moral imperialism: A critical anthology (pp. 39-60). New York, NY: New York University Press.
• Savickas, M. L. (2015). Career counseling paradigms: Guiding, developing, and designing. In P. J. Hartung, M. L. Savickas & W. B. Walsh (Eds.), APA handbook of career intervention: Vol. 1. Foundations (pp. 129-143). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
• Soto, A. (2011). Narrativas de profesionales chilenos sobre sus trayectorias laborales: la construcción de identidades en el trabajo [Narratives of Chilean professionals about their working trajectories: The construction of identities at work]. Psykhe, 20(1), 15-27. doi:10.4067/S0718-22282011000100002
• Spicer, A., Alvesson, M., & Kärreman, D. (2016). Extending critical performativity. Human Relations, 69(2), 225-249. doi: 10.1177/0018726715614073
• Stecher, A. (2012). Perfiles identitarios de trabajadores de grandes empresas del retail en Santiago de Chile: aportes psicosociales a la comprensión de las identidades laborales [Identity profiles of workers in large retail companies in Santiago, Chile: Psychosocial contributions to the understanding of labor identities]. Psykhe, 21(2), 9-20. doi: 10.7764/psykhe.21.2.538
• Strangleman, T. (2012). Work identity in crisis? Rethinking the problem of attachment and loss at work. Sociology, 46(3), 411-425. doi: 10.1177/0038038511422585
• Strauss, A., & Corbin, J. M. (1990). Basics of qualitative research: Grounded theory procedures and techniques. London, UK: Sage.
• Sullivan, S. E., & Baruch, Y. (2009). Advances in career theory and research: A critical review and agenda for future exploration. Journal of Management, 35(6), 1542-1571. doi: 10.1177/0149206309350082
• Sultana, R. G. (2013). Flexibility and security? ‘Flexicurity’ and its implications for lifelong guidance. British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, 41(2), 145-163. doi: 10.1080/03069885.2012.721125
• Sultana, R. G. (Ed.). (2017). Career guidance and livelihood planning across the Mediterranean challenging transitions in South Europe and the MENA region. Rotterdam, The Netherlands: Sense.
• Sveningsson, S., & Alvesson, M. (2003). Managing managerial identities: Organizational fragmentation, discourse and identity struggle. Human Relations, 56(10), 1163-1193. doi: 10.1177/00187267035610001
• Touraine, A. (2007). New paradigm for understanding today’s world. Cambridge, UK: Polity.
• Trede, F. (2012). Role of work-integrated learning in developing professionalism and professional identity. Asia-Pacific Journal of Cooperative Education, 13(3), 159-167.
• Van Langenhove, L., & Harré, R. (1993). Positioning and autobiography: Telling your life. In N. Coupland, & J. F. Nussbaum (Eds.), Discourse and lifespan identity (pp. 81-99). London, UK: Sage.
• Vera, N. J. A., & Valenzuela, M. J. E. (2012). El concepto de identidad como recurso para el estudio de transiciones [Identity as a conceptual resource for the study of transitions]. Psicologia & Sociedade, 24(2), 272-282. doi: 10.1590/S0102-71822012000200004
• Wenger, E. (1998). Communities of practice: Learning, meaning and identity. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge.
• World Bank (2013). World development indicators 2013. Washington, DC: World Bank. doi: 10.1596/978-0-8213-9824-1.

License

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.