In the month of December there was a considerable amount of discussion on the APG (Association of Professional Genealogists) mailing list about \u00e2\u20ac\u0153occupational closure\u201d and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153true profession.\u201d \u00c2\u00a0I have to admit that I had to conduct considerable research to understand those two unfamiliar terms, apparently understood by sociologists, but not by me.<\/p>\n
Wikipedia defines occupational closure<\/a>\u00c2\u00a0as:<\/p>\n …the sociological term given to the process whereby a trade or occupation transforms itself into a true profession by closing off entry to the profession to all but those suitably qualified.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Consequently, one may define true profession as:<\/p>\n A trade or occupation that is restricted to those who are suitably qualified.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The Wikipedia article on occupational closure further states that:<\/p>\n (Occupational closure) .. .\u00a0can be achieved by licensure, through barring entry to all except those who have passed certain entrance examinations and grades of training, or by allowing entry only to those who have gained membership of a specific professional body.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n In reality, all three methods of occupational closure are used in the true professions such as law and medicine .\u00a0 However, without licensure (or some other governmental regulation), the only achievable goal is that of a semi profession (a profession that does not meet all the requirements of a true profession).<\/p>\n Let me invent a fictional organization that oversees the entire genealogy profession and call it GARP (Genealogists Are Real Professionals) .\u00a0 Let’s say that GARP decided to establish a tiered membership structure with three levels:\u00a0 1) full members who have demonstrated their competency in genealogy through a combination of formal training, certification or accreditation, examination, and experience, 2)\u00c2\u00a0 transitional members who have not yet demonstrated the competencies required for full membership, but whose intent is to achieve full membership, and 3) associate members who are basically hobbyists whose goal is to apply the principles of professional genealogy in their own research.<\/p>\n Potential clients who come across the GARP website would immediately be able to discern who, in the eyes of GARP, were best qualified to conduct genealogical research on their behalf (full members) and those who were not (transitional members and associate members) .\u00a0 Yet, without governmental regulation, there would be no requirement to be a member of GARP in order to seek employment as a professional genealogist and anyone, regardless of his or her qualifications, could still advertise their services through any means at his or her disposal.<\/p>\n Restrictions on who could practice genealogical research for hire would likely require licensure, licensure would require regulation by a governmental authority, and regulation would require legislation by state or national government .\u00a0 However, efforts to successfully pass such legislation would\u00c2\u00a0probably require evidence that licensure was required in order to protect the public health or safety .\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0Personally,\u00a0I have not seen evidence that\u00c2\u00a0unlicensed professional genealogists are a threat to public health or safety.<\/p>\n The primary way to limit entry to the profession to those who are suitably qualified is through licensing .\u00a0 Without licensing, genealogy will not likely achieve occupational closure .\u00a0 Without occupational closure, genealogy cannot meet the sociological definition of a true profession .\u00a0 I have\u00c2\u00a0rarely heard\u00c2\u00a0anyone even mention licensing\u00c2\u00a0professional genealogists and I suspect that any effort to require licensing of professional genealogists would\u00c2\u00a0attract little support from the community.<\/p>\n The 11th edition of the Merriam Webster Online Dictionary defines profession<\/a> as (among other things) \u00e2\u20ac\u0153a principal calling, vocation, or employment\u201d and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153the whole body of persons engaged in a calling\u201d, definitions easily understood by the general public .\u00a0 The term \u00e2\u20ac\u0153true profession\u201d is understood in sociology circles, but it is not well understood among the general population where it is most likely to be understood as the counterpart of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153pretend profession\u201d or \u00e2\u20ac\u0153hobby\u201d rather than by its sociological definition as a profession with occupational closure .\u00a0 Indeed, if I stood up at the annual meeting of the American Chemical Society, the world’s largest scientific society, and told the members that chemistry was not a true profession, I’d probably sit down to find a capsule of cyanide in my tea.<\/p>\n In the end,\u00a0I think that discussions of “occupational closure” and “true profession” are rather pointless in the field of genealogy .\u00a0 With that, I offer all of you my best regards and wishes for a Happy New Year!<\/p>\n And, by the way, if you’d like to become a Charter Member of GARP, just send me a clean, unmarked twenty dollar bill in a plain brown envelope.<\/p>\n Copyright \u00a9 2011 by Stephen J. Danko<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In the month of December there was a considerable amount of discussion on the APG (Association of Professional Genealogists) mailing list about \u00e2\u20ac\u0153occupational closure\u201d and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153true profession.\u201d \u00c2\u00a0I have to admit that I had to conduct considerable research to understand … Continue reading