The assimilatory impact of professional Identity formation on racial and ethnic minority doctor of pharmacy students

Abstract

The ideology of professional identity formation (PIF) is trending in pharmacy education. Therefore, we must initiate conversations about how the PIF framework impacts minoritized students. PIF is applied at default through the white racial frame, which is why making PIF inclusive is difficult. The concept of PIF itself is Eurocentric and relies on normative colonial systems, order, and viewpoints. Due to white centering, the PIF framework then becomes a tool of assimilation. This socially conditions marginalized and minoritized individuals to participate in the dominant culture's society according to those norms. Here we review the capitalistic angles of PIF, how PIF encourages assimilation, the interplay of role modeling on student development, and how to adjust the PIF framework to be more inclusive for minoritized learners.