Exploring Occupational Identity through Craft
Craft is not an area that has played a large role in my life previously but it did play a prominent role in my fieldwork two placement where students spent one afternoon a week participating in a range of craft activities. My role was to assist the students with anything from threading needles and providing a hand with scissors, to giving a full description of what is happening for visually impaired students. The range of craft activities gave the students with a sense of achievement upon completion as well as an opportunity for companionship and building a sense of community.
Doing
According to Hammell (2004) the doing of purposeful, goal
oriented activities providing an affirmation of competence, sense of self worth
through being valuable and capable in the endeavour. This can be seen through the process of the
craft’s creation, from assembling he required equipment to the cutting of paper
and threading of needles and the completion final product.
Being
Being is described by Hammell (2004) as the time taken to
reflect, be introspective or meditative as well as being surrounded by people
the individual values. “Being” is
illustrated through the people participating in craft activities with others as
well as being able to use the time to reflect.
Belonging
Hammell (2004) refers to belonging as social interactions
and their related support, friendship and sense of inclusion that is gained
from the interactions. Belonging can be
seen through the images where individuals are brought together through their
participation in craft activities.
Becoming
Becoming involves envisioning the future self and the future
contributions being made to the self and others (Hammell, 2004). The ides of ‘becoming’ is evident through the
images of participation in crafts throughout the lifespan and where different
older/more experienced crafters are encouraging participation in craft
activities.
Some of the ethical considerations I made when choosing the
images provided include providing a brief and general description of my
experiences on placement but have respected the privacy of the individuals by
not naming the site. I have made
reference to the appropriate people and sources when I have used their
information or for their contributions.
I was sure not to name individuals when writing this blog to respect
their privacy. I gained informed consent
from the individual’s home in which the photos were taken so they knew what it
would be used for.
References:
Hammell, K.W. (2004).
Dimensions of meaning in the occupations of daily life. Canadian
Journal of Occupational Therapy, 71 (5).
