Professional Identity: Social representations of Chilean social workers in times of the dictatorship

Abstract This article examines the social representations of Chilean social workers who worked professionally in human rights organizations during Chile’s civilian-military dictatorship. It specifically analyzes the central components in the construction of their professional identity. The study is qualitative and its data production strategy involves thematic life histories. The main findings indicate that the central components in the construction of the professional identity are professional education, ethics and professional activity conditioned by the socio-historic context. The article reveals a social representation of social work committed to the defense of human rights as a specific element, in which the empowerment of the popular subjects was a main characteristic of the working culture of the social workers interviewed.