Artists’ working approach and negotiations of their professional identities in care homes for older people

Authors

• Teija Nuutinen Itä-Suomen yliopisto
• Sanna Laulainen Itä-Suomen yliopisto
• Arto O. Salonen Itä-Suomen yliopisto

DOI: https://doi.org/10.30675/sp.126203

Keywords:

Professional artists, cultural wellbeing, social pedagogical working approach, professional identity, care homes for older people

Abstract

This study examines artists’ working approach and negotiations of their professional identities in the care homes for older people. The study is based on the social pedagogical working approach and the subject-oriented, socio-cultural perspective
on professional agency. The study asks how the social pedagogical approach manifests in artists’ work and what significance the approach has in the negotiations of their professional identities. The study material consisted of 14 focused interviews and was analyzed using theory-bound content analysis. According to the results, the social pedagogical working approach manifests in various ways in the artists’ work. Encountering and working with elderly residents makes artists redefine their identity as well as their values, attitudes, and motivations. The results highlight corporeality
as a central theme that cuts through the artists’ work and as a meaningful part of the working approach.