A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organization, or professional society) is usually a nonprofit organization seeking to further a particular profession, the interests of individuals engaged in that profession and the public interest.
The roles of these professional associations have been variously defined: "A group of people in a learned occupation who are entrusted with maintaining control or oversight of the legitimate practice of the occupation;" also a body acting "to safeguard the public interest;" organizations which "represent the interest of the professional practitioners," and so "act to maintain their own privileged and powerful position as a controlling body."
Many professional bodies are involved in the development and monitoring of professional educational programs, and the updating of skills, and thus perform professional certification to indicate that a person possesses qualifications in the subject area. Sometimes membership of a professional body is synonymous with certification, though not always. Membership of a professional body, as a legal requirement, can in some professions form the primary formal basis for gaining entry to and setting up practice within the profession; see licensure.
Many professional bodies also act as learned societies for the academic disciplines underlying their professions.
As a practical matter, most professional organizations of global scope (see List of international professional associations) are located in the United States. The U.S. has often led the transformation of various occupations into professions, a process described in the academic literature as professionalization.
Video Professional association
References
Maps Professional association
See also
- Advocacy
- Bar association
- Guild
- Inter-professional association
- Learned society
- Syndicate
- Trade association
- Trade union
- Working group
External links
- List of Professional bodies in the United Kingdom
- List of Professional bodies in Australia
- List of Professional bodies in Canada
- Anders Kjellberg Union density and specialist/professional unions in Sweden, Lund University: Studies in Social Policy, Industrial Relations, Working Life and Mobility. Research Reports 2013:2
Source of article : Wikipedia
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