The Professional Identity of Social Educators: A Review of the Literature

Abstract

We live immersed in a society characterized by the enormous number of changes that occur day after day, which has given rise to many new social needs. To meet these needs, the figure of the social educator has become essential. The present research consists of a systematic literature review that aimed to analyze the most recent studies on the professional identity of the social educator. For this purpose, the PRISMA methodology was used with the help of the ReSiste-CHS framework (Codina, 2018). After searching the databases (WoS, SCOPUS, and Google Scholar) and applying various inclusion/exclusion criteria, a total of 15 documents were selected and subjected to a thematic analysis. Among the main findings, we highlight the wide variety of aspects involved in shaping the identity of social educators, the significant training gaps in the training plans of this sector, and the difficulty in defining the functions and competencies of this figure. Finally, future lines of research are proposed, such as the need to restructure the current curricula of social educators or the development of more studies from a biographical-narrative approach that will allow us to better understand the identity of these professionals.