Identity and Career
While licensing and field of practice often overshadow the title of “Doctor” when it comes to formal responsibilities and privileges, the earning of and display of a doctoral degree come front and center when identity and self-image are the issue. While professionals may move around a bit from job to job if they are operating without a doctorate, there is a strong tendency for those with doctorates to use this title throughout their career (and life) and to remain in jobs that enable them to make full use of this title.
Career Settings
To provide a context for this assessment of identity and self-image among those with a doctorate in psychology, I turn to (and modify) a model of career settings first proposed by Michael Driver (1979, a faculty member at the University of Southern California. Driver proposed that one of four “career concepts” (and associated career paths) is promoted in most organizations. I relate their four types to specific organizational settings. These settings, in turn, help to forge one’s career-related identity and self-image.
I identify the first of the four settings as Steady State (SS). This is a setting (such as a hospital or human service agency) where one can engage in the same work during most, if not all, of their career. The SS setting is often found in the trades (where one spends their entire career as a plumber or carpenter) and in highly protected (often union-based) jobs (serving in an outdated position, such as a fireman on a train). However, it is also closely associated with the professions and, in particular, with those professions that require an advanced degree (such as a doctorate in psychology). This setting offers someone possible employment in a consistently structured job with clear and consistent job expectations. It also offers the possibility of being recognized for a specific and stable work assignment.
In this steady (and often protected) setting, one can safely take on and use the title of “Doctor.” One can expect this title to be honored. A job is awaiting after being awarded the degree. All of this, of course, requires that the environment is stable and that one’s specific area of expertise will forever be honored. Unfortunately, this is not always the case in a VUCA-Plus world. The implicit agreement (“covenant”) between oneself and one’s society may be broken. Even though one has dedicated themselves to many years of professional preparation (“the lost twenties”), this no longer means that one is automatically guaranteed lifelong employment. It also does not guarantee that one will be consistently honored for their “doctoral” designation. Identity and self-image are in jeopardy in a VUCA-Plus environment. This can lead to disillusionment, depression, and even anger among those who find their “covenant” broken (Cassatly and Bergquist, 2011).
