ABSTRACT
108Professions or key occupations claim to possess competence over a body of knowledge and a collection of techniques. These claims can be seen as a form of myth-building, explaining to participants and to the general public what typical members of a profession do, how they do it, why it needs to be done, and how capable they are of doing their work. To the extent that others believe these claims and trust that there is no serious disparity between professional promise and performance, responsibilities will be awarded to the profession. 1 An essential component of these claims to trust is that the professionals themselves are both willing and able to regulate the current competence and performance of practitioners. The exercise of social control by the profession over its members is thought, to ensure that the gap between professional promise and performance does not usually occur, and when it does occur, is not serious. The assumption of effective social control, therefore, lies at the core of professional authority. 2
