On Becoming a Psychologist: Emerging Identity in Education

On Becoming a Psychologist explores the professional identity construction of psychology students, examining their entry into the psychology profession from a socio-cultural perspective.

The book brings together socio-cultural approaches and Dialogical Self Theory to gain comprehensive insight into the developmental processes behind the formation of professional identity. It conceptualises the process of becoming a psychologist as an intrapersonally and interpersonally unique semiotic process of self-regulation that unfolds through dialogical relations with the individual’s socio-cultural surroundings. Building on empirical research, the book outlines the results of a longitudinal study of a cohort of psychology students throughout their studies and following their graduation. The study sheds light on how professional role expectations are negotiated between the different aspects of the self, with a particular focus on how the self is positioned throughout the course of professional education.

Offering a unique perspective on the socio-cultural construction of professional identity, this book will be of great interest to scholars, researchers and graduate students in the fields of cultural psychology, applied psychology and social psychology.

Katrin Kullasepp is Associate Professor of General Psychology at Tallinn University, Estonia.