Role-meanings as a critical factor in understanding doctor managers’ identity work and different role identities
Abstract
This study examines “identity work” among hybrid doctor-managers (DMs) in the Spanish National Health System to make sense of their managerial roles. In particular, the meanings underlying DMs experience of their hybrid role are investigated using a Grounded Theory methodology, exposing distinctions in role-meanings. Our findings provide evidence that using different social sources of comparison (senior managers or clinicians) to construct the meaning of managerial roles leads to different role-meanings and role identities, which are the source of the two established types of DM in the literature, the reluctant and the enthusiast. The contribution is twofold: our findings lead us to theorize DMs’ identity work processes by adding an overlooked role-meaning dimension to identity work; and raise practical reflections for those who wish to develop enthusiast doctor managers.
Citation
Cascón-Pereira , R , Chillas , S A & Hallier , J 2016 , ' Role-meanings as a critical factor in understanding doctor managers’ identity work and different role identities ' , Social Science and Medicine , vol. 170 , pp. 18-25 . https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2016.09.043
Publication
Social Science and Medicine
Status
Peer reviewed
ISSN
0277-9536Type
Journal article
Collections
Items in the St Andrews Research Repository are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.