Professionalizing Body Art Flashcards
intro
An occupation, therefore, becomes a profession when it establishes exclusive jurisdiction over a particular area through the use of abstract knowledge
Maroto explores
how body art practitioners use both formal and informal strategies to exert control over the people and the activities they perform and to maintain autonomy as a group.
Exclusive jurisdiction
dominance or monopoly
traditional definition
Notion of abstract knowledge as key to understanding these occupations
Try to understand the strategies this particular occupation is using
Maintain autonomy as a group
Why does it want to gain control over its members and the work process?
Add more status
Standardized the standards of performance
Make sure people are doing a good job, “bad eggs” in their group that will bring down their reputation as a whole
Professionalism and Control within Occupational Groups
Control over standards and product of their activities
Control over members involved in those activities
Control can be informal or formal
members
Who gets into their occupation
How do you get the training or credentials
How do you evaluate those members and meeting the standards of the occupation
Control over the standards
Formal strategies – professional schools, licensing, statutory regulations
Traditional ways of maintaining control over members – informal strategies
Showing how these traditional informal strategies are still being used but this occupation is adopting formal strategies
Something happening that is provoking this occupation
Should there be state regulation? – that is what she’s interested in looking at
Professionalism and Control within Occupational Groups
Maroto focuses on three dominant formal control strategies in pursuing professionalization:
- Standardization of training
- Formation of professional organizations
- Incorporation of statutory regulations
Body artists also continue to use informal strategies as well
Formal strategies that have not been used previously and how members feel about these strategies
Body Art in the US
Historically, body art considered deviant behavior associated with sailors, bikers, carnival performers, convicts and criminals
Tattoos now
Tattoos have gained acceptance and popularity
- increase demand for tattoos
- an art form
The size of the body art industry has increased
-Increase of competition amongst tattoo artists
With the rise in popularity, body artists have changed definitions of their work and community
-Key factors – leading to the shifts, controlling the members and work process – greater demand of tattoos
- Worries about people entering this occupation that aren’t maintaining the same standards
- Informal strategies are starting to break down
Data and method
46 surveys and 24 interviews of members of body art world in 2006 in King County (Seattle)WA
Analyzed legislation regarding tattooing and piercing
Offers a “social-worlds” perspective that depicts individual in broader social context
State regulated issue
In-depth contextual approach of the shifts that are going on
How individual members of the occupation were viewing these changes but also placing it in the broader social context – in terms of what was going on in the market and the demand
Findings: Professionalizing Control within Body Art
Formal professionalization strategies are integrated with informal ones to maintain control of occupational membership and standards
They don’t give up previous forms of regulation but rather incorporate new ones
The strategies they use depend on their work environment and self identity
She found
When we think about occupations and strategies they might use, it might depend on the work environments and the self identity of that occupation
Not giving up informal strategies because of the work
places they are working in
Working in small shops – working like contractors
Keeping a hold of these informal strategies
Maintain or hang
Identifying themselves more as artists
Emphasis on being an artist
Setting out rules and
regulations that’s based on art
Findings: Professionalizing Control within Body Art
Body artists have a strong artist identity
Informal strategies of control through internal solidarity, apprenticeship and shop owner standards
Challenges and change as body art expands becoming more profitable and more competitive
Internal solidarity
Strong because of their deviant status
They weren’t seen as a legitimate job
Closing off the community from outsiders
Because of the deviant status they held, they didn’t have other people saying they wanted to be a tattoo artists
Didn’t have to do much for boundary maintenance
Enhanced their solidarity as members of the same group
Relationship with one another with fellow tattoo artists
Senior members are sharing their tips and secrets in training the younger members
Everyone knew everyone else in these shops
Individuals would say I trained under so and so
A lot of informal regulations of members and the quality of work amongst members
Competition
More people wanting tattoos and becoming tattoo artists
Challenges they faced increased business, competition, and popularity
What they were experiencing, as a result of these shifts – their networks started to break down
The informal strategies started to break down
People didn’t know everyone in this occupation or where they were being trained
Findings: Professionalizing Control within Body Art
Incorporation of formal strategies of control:
- Standardization of training and credentialism
- Professional organizations
- Statutory regulation
Standardization of training
one that we associate with specific occupations
View themselves as artists – they don’t see the art part as something that needs to be trained or credential
Gain skills through apprenticeship through the shops = informal strategy of maintaining control over the work process
Concerns about the health aspects
We think that tattoo artists should be trained and certified in the aspects of tattooing
Formal strategy – the exert some control over the members
Depends on which part you are talking about
Professional organization
Professional associations - The ones who license people to be part of the association
Had one but not effective – not very useful
Body piercers lacked having this – had on on paper but members were supposed to be on it
Lack of leadership
The existing organization they had in place set high standards
The problem was they did not have any resources or any way of enforcing them
No negative consequences if members did not meet the requirements
As a result membership in the occupational organization that did exist was very low because it seemed to be a meaningless occupation
The only support offered to these members was the health regulations
Having a particular license that allowed you to practice that met health standards
Statutory regulation
State being involved of regulating the work process or membership
Professional occupation often do not want to relinquish control to outsiders
Ex: Lawyers want to monitor lawyers performance
Discussion: A Definition for Body Art
The title of “profession” brings occupational groups a certain level of control and legitimacy.
-Offers greater status
Body art practitioners base their identity in the art world rather that within a professional world.
Artwork is a type of specialized knowledge that body art practitioners seek to maintain exclusive jurisdiction over.
Argues that this is why they partly cannot achieve full professional status
Very protective of this particular artform
Conclusions
Body art practitioners do not fit into any particular occupational category; they are artisans, artists, service workers, and professionals.
They use both informal strategies and formal strategies to maintain control of other practitioners and the work that they do.
Members stand to benefit from the incorporation of professionalization strategies even though they do not fit a general definition of a profession.
The findings suggest we need to revise our conceptions of professions.
When we look at occupations in general
she suggests that we should look at: even if occupations don’t achieve professional status, they still can benefit by using some professionalization strategies
Help them obtain greater control – raise their status
Certification of certain aspects
Require certain training
don’t meet all of their requirements
Need to revise our conceptions of professions and what it means to be professionals
There are so many occupations that do not fit into that professional category
Need to have a more critical approach
