DOCSLIB.ORG

Cross-Cultural Study of Adolescent Identity Formation and Autonomy Within the Context of Parent-Adolescent Relationships Shruti Chatterjee Graf

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Cross-Cultural Study of Adolescent Identity Formation and Autonomy Within the Context of Parent-Adolescent Relationships Shruti Chatterjee Graf Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2003 Cross-Cultural Study of Adolescent Identity Formation and Autonomy within the Context of Parent-Adolescent Relationships Shruti Chatterjee Graf Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF HUMAN SCIENCES CROSS-CULTURAL STUDY OF ADOLESCENT IDENTITY FORMATION AND AUTONOMY WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF PARENT-ADOLESCENT RELATIONSHIPS By SHRUTI CHATTERJEE GRAF A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Family and Child Sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Degree Awarded: Summer Semester, 2003 Copyright © 2003 Shruti Chatterjee Graf All Rights Reserved The members of the Committee approve the Dissertation of Shruti Chatterjee Graf defended on June 18, 2003 __________________________ Ronald L. Mullis Professor Directing Dissertation __________________________ Nicholas Mazza Outside Committee Member __________________________ Ann K. Mullis Committee Member __________________________ Akihito Kamata Committee Member Approved: ______________________________________________________ Ronald L. Mullis, Chair, Department of Family and Child Sciences ______________________________________________________ Penny A. Ralston, Dean, College of Human Sciences The Office of Graduate Studies has verified and approved the above named committee members. This dissertation is dedicated to my parents, Swapna and Shanker Chatterjee for nurturing me with infinite love. Their complete trust in me and faith in my abilities has made it possible for me to accomplish this milestone. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I thank my husband, David Graf for his consistent support and unlimited patience throughout the highs and lows of my doctoral study. Without Dave’s unconditional love and encouragement, I would not have been able to successfully complete my dissertation. He made several sacrifices throughout my doctoral program so that I could remain true to my commitments at school. Thank you Dave for being my partner in life and my best friend. Next, I thank my committee members for their continued guidance and support throughout the process of conducting research and writing my dissertation. In particular, I thank Dr. Ron Mullis for honing my analytical and writing skills. Thank you, Dr. Ron Mullis and Dr. Ann Mullis, for training me to think critically and attend to details. Also, Dr. Ann Mullis, I thank you for taking out time during your sabbatical year to provide substantive feedbacks on my research methodology and dissertation drafts. I thank Dr. Nick Mazza for agreeing to serve on my committee at a short notice. I appreciate your flexibility in meeting with me and other committee members. It would not have been possible for me to conduct and analyze my study without Dr. Kamata’s guidance and useful suggestions on statistical applications. For that, I thank you. I also appreciate Dr. David Wright for making my transition from India into the department easier and ensuring that I felt comfortable in the new setting. Thank you. Thank you, Dr. Steve Harkreader and Ms. Betty Brown, for your useful insights and assistance with my statistical analyses. Ms. Marcia Williams, I thank you for your patience in educating me about all the necessary paperwork over the course of my study. Your willingness to help is definitely an asset to us students. Thank you, Dr. Mary Ann Moore, for your kindness and support. I am innately grateful to the following people who proactively helped me collect the iv sample for this study: my parents, Swapna and Shanker Chatterjee; my parents-in-laws, Ellen and Earl Graf; my cousin-in-law, Kelly Graf; Mr. Greg Bradley; Mr. John Manth; and Ms. Sarah Hansgate. I thank my parents for liaising between the school in India and me. Also, without my parents-in-law’s networking, I would not have been able to get a reasonable sample from the U.S. Thank you all. I also thank my brother, Digaunto Chatterjee for believing in my abilities and my sister-in-law, Rebecca Graf for her support. I thank God for blessing me with a loving and supportive family. It is from them that I draw my inner strength. v TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Tables ……………………………………………………………………... viii List of Figures ………………………………………………………………….…. x Abstract ……………………………………………………………………………. xi 1. INTRODUCTION ………………………………………………………..……. 1 Adolescent Identity Formation and Autonomy ………………………….. 1 Statement of Purpose …………………………………………………….. 6 Research Questions ………………………………………………………. 7 Operational Definitions …………………………………………………... 7 Assumptions ……………………………………………………………… 8 Limitations ……………………………………………………………….. 8 2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE ………………………………………………..… 9 Evolution of Identity Formation in Adolescence ………………………… 10 Identity Formation and Parent-Adolescent Relationships ……………….. 12 Relations Between Adolescent Identity Formation and Autonomy ……... 15 Autonomy and Parent-Adolescent Relationships ………………………... 17 Age Differences in Adolescent Identity and Autonomy …………………. 21 Gender Differences in Adolescent Identity and Autonomy ……………… 24 Cultural Differences in Adolescent Identity and Autonomy ……………... 28 Summary …………………………………………………………………... 33 3. METHODOLOGY …………………………………………………………..…. 34 Research Design …………………………………………………………... 34 Sampling ………………………………………………………………….. 35 Instrumentation …………………………………………………………… 41 Procedure …………………………………………………………………. 45 Statistical Analysis ……………………………………………………….. 46 4. RESULTS ……………………………………………………………….……… 48 Research Question 1(A) …………………………………………………... 49 Research Question 1(B) …………………………………………………... 50 Research Question 2(A) …………………………………………………... 50 Research Question 2(B) …………………………………………………... 51 vi Research Question 3(A) …………………………………………………... 52 Research Question 3(B) …………………………………………………... 53 Research Question 3(C) …………………………………………………... 54 Research Question 4(A) …………………………………………………... 57 Research Question 4(B) …………………………………………………... 58 Research Question 4(C) …………………………………………………... 59 Research Question 4(D) …………………………………………………... 60 Research Question 5(A) …………………………………………………... 61 Research Question 5(B) …………………………………………………... 62 Research Question 5(C) …………………………………………………... 63 Research Question 5(D) …………………………………………………... 64 Research Question 6(A) …………………………………………………... 65 Research Question 6(B) …………………………………………………... 66 5. DISCUSSION …………………………………………………………….…….. 68 Correlational Analyses ……………………………………………………. 68 Causal Analyses …………………………………………………………… 75 Predictive Analyses ……………………………………………………….. 75 Limitations of the Present Study ………………………………………….. 80 Implications and Recommendations for Further Research ……………….. 81 Appendix A. Florida State University Human Subjects Review Board Approval …. 82 Appendix B. Informed Consent Form for Student Participation …………………… 84 Appendix C. Informed Consent Form for Parents ………………………………….. 86 Appendix D. Instrument …………………………………………………………….... 88 REFERENCES ……………………………………………………………………… 99 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH ……………………………………………………….. 112 vii LIST OF TABLES 1. Age, Gender and Cultural Distribution of Asian Indian and U.S. American Participants …………………………………………………………………….. 35 2. Family Structure of Asian Indian and U.S. American Participants …………… 36 3. Number of Siblings of Asian Indian and U.S. American Participants ………… 37 4. Religious Distribution of Asian Indian and U.S. American Participants ……… 37 5. Educational Level of Fathers of Asian Indian and U.S. American Participants ... 38 6. Educational Level of Mothers of Asian Indian and U.S. American Participants .. 38 7. Occupation of the Primary Income Earner …………………………………….. 39 8. Adolescent’s Occupational Choice in the Future ……………………………… 40 9. Correlational Analysis Using Bivariate Correlations: Parent-Adolescent Relationships and Identity Formation in India (N=200) ………………………. 49 10. Correlational Analysis Using Bivariate Correlations: Parent-Adolescent Relationships and Identity Formation in the U.S.A .(N=234) ………………… 50 11. Correlational Analysis Using Bivariate Correlations: Parent-Adolescent Relationships and Autonomy in India (N=200) ……………………………….. 50 12. Correlational Analysis Using Bivariate Correlations Parent-Adolescent Relationships and Autonomy in the U.S.A. (N=234) …………………...……. 51 13. Correlational Analysis Using Bivariate Correlations: Autonomy and Identity Formation in India (N=200) …………………………………………………… 52 14. Correlational Analysis Using Bivariate Correlations: Autonomy and Identity Formation in the U.S.A. (N=234) ……………………………………………… 53 15. Predictive Analysis Using Multivariate and Univariate Analysis of Covariance Techniques: Age Differences in Adolescent Identity Formation in India (N=199) ……………………………………………………………………….. 57 viii 16. Predictive Analysis Using Multivariate and Univariate Analysis of Covariance Techniques: Age Differences in Adolescent Identity Formation in the U.S.A. (N=230) ………………………………………………………………...……… 58 17. Predictive Analysis Using Multivariate and Univariate Analysis of Covariance Techniques: Age Differences in Adolescent Autonomy in India (N=199) …….. 59 18. Predictive Analysis Using Multivariate and Univariate Analysis of Covariance Techniques: Age Differences in Adolescent Autonomy in the U.S.A. (N=230) ………………………………………………………………………... 60 19. Predictive Analysis Using Multivariate and Univariate Analysis of Covariance Techniques: Gender Differences in Adolescent Identity Formation in India (N=199) ………………………………………………………………………... 61 20. Predictive Analysis Using Multivariate
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Exploring the Professional Identity Formation of Teachers
    Proceedings of the NARST 2009 Annual Meeting PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY DEVELOPMENT IN TEACHERS OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING, MATH, AND SCIENCE AND MATH EDUCATION Much of the science education community has advocated for a new vision of instruction emphasizing inquiry-based teaching (National Research Council, 1996). Unfortunately, as Anderson (2002) notes, many science teachers are not adopting inquiry-based teaching practices for a variety of reasons such as that teachers commonly favor text-book approaches to instruction. To facilitate the adoption of reformed teaching, Luehmann (2007) argues that teacher education must address the development of one‟s professional identity as a teacher. Unfortunately, little is known about the beliefs, values, experiences, and ways of acting and interacting that teachers in science and related fields use to form their professional teaching identity. Through repeated interviews with 18 graduate students who taught science and related disciplines, this study outlined generalizations defining the developmental trajectory of science educators‟ professional identity. In general, for less experienced teacher participants, one‟s own experiences as a student were particularly influential in learning how to teach, while for more experienced teacher participants, coursework, self- reflection, professional development experiences, and the review of professional journals were influential to skill development. Study results generally reflected the trajectory of teacher development (from teacher-centered concerns to student- centered concerns) put forth by Fuller and Bown (1975). More detailed findings indicated, however, that co-teaching experiences may have assisted teachers in moving from more teacher-centered concerns, including a focus on one‟s personality characteristics and ability to develop and implement engaging instructional activities, to more student-centered concerns, such as adjusting instruction to meet students‟ needs and facilitating student investigations.
    [Show full text]
  • Culture and Identity
    chapter 1 culture and identity leticia a. Guardiola-sáenz and frank m. yamada If there is one clear commonality between twenty- reject or to accept certain differences in other peo- first-century readers of the Bible and the peoples of ple. Later, as we grow and pass through the stages the biblical world, it is that each of us, like each of of life, participating in new cultural spaces such them, belongs to a culture and has an identity. Of as school, church, workplace, and community, we course, our contemporary cultures and identities encounter other ways to value diversity, which can also set us apart, in various ways, from the peoples either affirm or challenge our earlier perceptions. of the Bible. How, then, can understanding culture Sadly, more often than not, we are socially trained and identity help us understand the biblical text, to assimilate that which is similar to us and reject considering our sameness but without losing sight that which is different from us. What is similar and of our differences? familiar appeals to our trust, but what is different Our initial encounter with culture and the and strange tends to trigger fear and suspicion in us. process of identity formation is subtle and imper- But as nations are becoming more and more cultur- ceptible; it begins with our first breath. Our first ally diverse because of immigration and political, interactions with those who care for us and with the social, and economic factors, the face of the world environment we share with them give us our first is changing and new identities and cultural spaces appreciation of sameness and difference; we learn to are emerging.
    [Show full text]
  • “TEACHING” FORMATION of PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY David
    “TEACHING” FORMATION OF PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY David I. C. Thomson INTRODUCTION In its landmark 2007 report on legal education, the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching focused its strongest criticism on the conclusion that law schools were not paying sufficient attention to the formation of professional identity in their students.1 This was a relatively new concept to legal educators, although one they may have addressed occasionally in some courses and clinical offerings.2 But the Carnegie Report put a spotlight on the obligation as follows: “Because it always involves social relationships with consequences, [law] practice ultimately depends on serious engagement with the meaning of the activities—in other words, with their moral bearing. For professionals, the decisive dimension is responsibility for clients and for the values the public has entrusted to the profession.”3 It is instructive to remember that the Carnegie Report was part of a series of reports on education for the professions and included reports on the training of doctors, nurses, clergy, and engineers.4 In each report, Carnegie Foundation authors emphasized the professional formation of the student.5 However, perhaps because the legal profession already had a code of professional conduct6 and the ABA already required every law school to teach professional ethical rules,7 many legal educators did not understand what exactly was missing. As a result of the report encouraging the emphasis of professional identity formation in a Professor of Practice, University of Denver, Sturm College of Law. The author wishes to express his appreciation to Fred Cheever, Roberto Corrada, Bill Sullivan, Eli Wald, Marty Katz, Cliff Zimmerman, Daisy Hurst Floyd, Stephen Daniels, and Ben Madison for their feedback on this Article.
    [Show full text]
  • Components and Process of Identity Formation in Model of the Authorship of Own Lives in People with Disabilities
    COMPONENTS AND PROCESS OF IDENTITY FORMATION IN MODEL OF THE AUTHORSHIP OF OWN LIVES IN PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES Abstract: The subject of this article consistently develops the Joanna Głodkowska, PhD authorship of own lives in people with disabilities concept. With Full Professor at The Maria Grzegorzewska reference to the strategic framework (contextualism and University (APS) systemness in particular), it constructs an AOL-PwD model. Director of Institute of Special Education The model presents identity as a constitutive area in Head of Chair of Interdisciplinary understanding the authorship of their own lives in people with Disability Studies disabilities. The AOL-PwD model is composed of three 40 Szczęśliwicka Street interrelated elements: (1) authorship aspects, (2) identity 02-353 Warszawa components, and (3) process links. The article proposes Poland important theses that chart direction for research. It suggests that E-mail: [email protected] identity is a fundamental category in exploring the AOL-PwD. ORCID: 0000-0001-5579-060X The authorship of their own lives in people with disabilities is a dynamic category. As a result of AOL-PwD formation, the Marta Pągowska, PhD individual achieves a given authorship status: achieved, Assistant Professor at The Maria foreclosed, diffused, or moratorium status. The identity status Grzegorzewska University (APS) achieved determines the way people with disabilities perceive Head of Institute of Special Education their authorship life aspects. Developmental dynamics and Chair of Interdisciplinary Disability Studies specific identity and life authorship statuses being acquired 40 Szczęśliwicka Street suggest that it is necessary to redefine these areas of people's 02-353 Warszawa functioning on a regular basis.
    [Show full text]
  • The Code of Medical Ethics and the Challenge of Professional Identity Formation
    Personal Identities, Professional Identity Formation, and Implications for Physician Professionalism Audiey Kao, MD, PhD Vice President, Ethics Name as Identity 2 © 2018 American Medical Association. All rights reserved. Commonly Heard First Words I thought you were a woman physician. 3 © 2018 American Medical Association. All rights reserved. Patient-Physician Concordance • Studies examining the effect of gender and racial concordance in the patient-physician relationship have revealed mixed results. • Even if the effects are positive, it is infeasible to achieve gender and racial concordance across every patient-physician interaction and relationship. • Even if it was feasible, there are certain patient requests for concordance that should not be fulfilled. 4 © 2018 American Medical Association. All rights reserved. Personal and Professional Identities Personal Gender Professional Identity Race PIdentity Religion Attributes Attributes 5 © 2018 American Medical Association. All rights reserved. Professional Identity Formation (PIF) • Within medical education, PIF is a multi-faceted process by which medical students transition from laypersons to physicians. • From a physician’s perspective, PIF is the process of internalizing a profession’s core values and beliefs. • From a patient’s perspective, PIF is how these internalized values and beliefs manifest in a physician’s professional obligations. 6 © 2018 American Medical Association. All rights reserved. Establishing Ethical Norms and Obligations 7 © 2018 American Medical Association.
    [Show full text]
  • SOCIAL IDENTITY SIMILARITY EFFECTS on an EVALUATION of BLAME a Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the College of Arts and Scien
    SOCIAL IDENTITY SIMILARITY EFFECTS ON AN EVALUATION OF BLAME A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts Chris J. Kast August 2007 2 This thesis titled SOCIAL IDENTITY SIMILARITY EFFECTS ON AN EVALUATION OF BLAME by CHRIS J. KAST has been approved for the Department of Sociology and Anthropology and the College of Arts and Sciences by Robert K. Shelly Professor of Sociology Benjamin M. Ogles Dean, College of Arts and Sciences 3 Abstract KAST, CHRIS J., M.A., August 2007, Sociology SOCIAL IDENTITY SIMILARITY EFFECTS ON AN EVALUATION OF BLAME (71 pp.) Director of Thesis: Robert K. Shelly Work on the social construction of identity has emerged concurrently from different areas, each attempting to explain the plethora of identities present in society. Two such attempts, identity control theory and social identity theory, each attend to different portions of the social identity dynamic. Integration of these two approaches has the potential to increase understanding of interpersonal judgments. Traditionally, work utilizing Social Identity Theory has been examined using a distribution of resources model. For this research evaluations of blame between subjects are examined in order to determine if in-group favoritism and out-group denigration as found in resource distribution studies are present in a post behavior evaluative framework. Approved: _____________________________________________________________ Robert K. Shelly Professor of Sociology 4 Acknowledgments I would like to thank my advisor Dr. Robert Shelly as well as the rest of my Committee Dr. Christine Mattley and Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • An Exploration of the Ethnic Identity Scale Among High School and University Students
    Ethnic Identity 1 An Exploration of the Ethnic Identity Scale among High School and University Students Adriana J. Umaña-Taylor University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Adriana J. Umaña-Taylor, Department of Human and Community Development, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, 61801; [email protected]. For Indicators of Positive Development Conference March 12-13, 2003 Ethnic Identity 2 Abstract Consistent with Erikson’s and Tajfel’s theoretical perspectives, the Ethnic Identity Scale (EIS) assesses three domains of ethnic identity formation: exploration, resolution, and affirmation. The current chapter explores the findings of three studies in which high school and university students (N = 1,171) completed measures of familial ethnic socialization and self-esteem in addition to completing the EIS. Results provide preliminary evidence for the validity and reliability of the EIS and indicate that the measure is appropriate for use with adolescents ranging in age and ethnic background. Furthermore, when taken together, findings from the three studies highlight developmental trends and contextual influences that can be examined using the EIS. For Indicators of Positive Development Conference March 12-13, 2003 3 An Exploration of the Ethnic Identity Scale among High School and University Students Identity formation is a critical developmental task that increases in salience during adolescence as individuals begin to grapple with the question “Who am I?” (Erikson, 1968). Given that the resolution of one’s identity during this period is thought to serve as a guiding framework in adulthood (Josselson, 1994; Spencer, Swanson, & Cunningham, 1991; Swanson, Spencer, & Petersen, 1997), there is a growing interest in exploring adolescents’ identity development.
    [Show full text]
  • A Three-Stage Model of Ethnic Identity Formation Jean S
    Rosetta Eun Ryong Lee Identity Development Workshop A Three-Stage Model of Ethnic Identity Formation Jean S. Phinney Several Models of Ethnic Development have been proposed. Many researchers agree that an achieved identity is the result of a crisis or awakening, which leads to a period of exploration or experimentation and finally to a commitment or incorporation of one’s ethnicity. Phinney focused on the process of ethnic identity formation - the way in which individuals come to understand the implications of their ethnicity and make decisions about its role in their lives, regardless of the extent of their ethnic involvement. Stage 1: Unexamined Ethnic Identity • Characterized by the lack of exploration of ethnicity. • Existing models suggest that minority subjects initially accept the values and attitudes of the majority culture, including internalized negative views of their own group held by the majority. Stage 2: Ethnic Identity Search/Moratorium • The initial stage of ethnic identity is conceptualized as continuing until adolescents encounter a situation that initiates an ethnic identity search. Stage 3: Ethnic Identity Achievement • The ideal outcome of the identity process, characterized by a clear, confident sense of one’s own ethnicity. • Identity achievement corresponds to acceptance and internalization of one’s ethnicity. Adapted from aurora.wells.edu/~vim/PhinneyEthnicIdentity.ppt and www.tomsegar.com and Nakkula and Toshalis, Understanding Youth Rosetta Eun Ryong Lee Identity Development Workshop Phinney's Model of Ethnic Identity Development What You Might Say or What You May Feel Stage 1: Diffusion-Foreclosure Overall: “I haven't really thought about my feelings around my ethnicity. I’m not sure I even have feelings about my ethnicity.
    [Show full text]
  • Negotiating and Constructing Religious Identities’
    Daniel Moulin, University of Oxford, UK [email protected] 2013 REA Annual Meeting, Nov 8-10 ‘Negotiating and constructing religious identities’ Abstract What is ‘religious identity’ and how may schooling impact upon it? In this paper, I present an elementary theory of religious identity construction and negotiation, drawing upon the theoretical framework that emerged from extensive fieldwork as part of a study of adolescent Christians, Jews and Muslims in England undertaken for my DPhil at the University of Oxford. I suggest that a conception of religious identity negotiation and construction based upon sociological and anthropological theories has much potential for educators and educational researchers. This is because to understand the impact of schooling on religious identity construction, a theory must be sensitive to social context, structural factors and power-relations – and how such phenomena may be interpreted and acted upon by individuals. In the course of this argument, I refer to important empirical and theoretical studies in comparable areas of inquiry. Introduction: conceptions of religious identity in educational research Reflecting a dichotomy in identity theory more widely, conceptions of religious identity in educational research can be separated into two principal groups: those that assume a psychological conception of identity, and those that assume an anthropological or cultural studies conception of identity. The former, (e.g. Markstrom-Adams & Smith, 1996; Hunsberger et al., 2001; Rymarz & Graham, 2006; Bertram-Troost et al., 2006, 2007; Armet, 2009), adopt concepts that centre upon religious identity development or formation as a psychological process, while the latter focus on religious identity construction as a socially located process (e.g.
    [Show full text]
  • Developing “A Way of Being”: Deliberate Approaches to Professional Identity Formation in Medical Education
    Academic Psychiatry https://doi.org/10.1007/s40596-019-01048-4 IN DEPTH ARTICLE: COMMENTARY Developing “a Way of Being”: Deliberate Approaches to Professional Identity Formation in Medical Education Latha Chandran1 & Richard J. Iuli1 & Lisa Strano-Paul1 & Stephen G. Post 1 Received: 19 December 2018 /Accepted: 24 February 2019 # Academic Psychiatry 2019 Professional socialization and the development of reflec- Definitions of Professional Identity Formation tive capacity are critical elements that shape a medical trainee’s professional identity. A 2010 Carnegie In 1957, Merton stated that medical education should “shape Foundation Report argues that professional identity for- the novice into the effective practitioner of medicine, to give mation should be an important focus of medical educators him the best available knowledge and skills and to provide him and that identity transformation remains the highest with a professional identity so that he comes to think, act and purpose of medical education [1]. Education achieves this feel like a physician” [8]. Rabow focused on the moral conflicts highest purpose when a person develops new ways of that students will face in medical practice, suggesting that the thinkingandrelatingwithpeers[2]. Ultimately, the pro- goal of professional identity formation is to anchor foundational fessional ideal is to develop physicians who can bring principles in the trainee and prepare them to navigate such their “whole person to provide whole person care” [3]. inevitable conflicts in the future [9]. Jarvis-Selinger discusses An ideal professional identity embraces empathy, mindful professional identity formation as developmental and adaptive attention to patient care, integrity, self-awareness, team- processes at the individual and collective levels [10].
    [Show full text]
  • 4. Adolescent Identity Formation and the School Environment
    NEDA ABBASI 4. ADOLESCENT IDENTITY FORMATION AND THE SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT INTRODUCTION Forming an identity that sets a firm foundation for adulthood is the central developmental concern and issue of adolescence. Identity formation is a lifelong development which begins from “the baby’s earliest exchange of smiles” (Erikson, 2008, p. 226). Nevertheless, it significantly emerges to individuals’ consciousness or awareness during adolescence due to some significant physical and psychological changes as well as the emergence of new social expectations from the individuals (Adamson & Lyxell, 1996). School is among the important contexts within which adolescent identity formation unfolds. Despite a great deal of theoretical discussions and empirical studies in disciplines of psychology and education, little is known about the ways that school environments might support adolescents in their developmental task of identity formation. Similarly, discussions about identity formation during adolescence seem to be missing when designing a new school or refurbishing an existing one. There is a clear knowledge gap about the impacts of school environments on adolescent identity formation and much of the potential of these environments in supporting this developmental task are left untouched. This chapter presents an interpretation of identity formation that informs creating school environments responsive to this crucial developmental task during adolescence. A school environment was considered in terms of its social, pedagogical, organisational and other key components. Nevertheless, a particular emphasis was placed on the physical component of school environments. Such insights are expected to contribute to an understanding and awareness of identity formation for educational planners, architects, educators and all others involved in the planning, design and decision making and hopefully creating school environments that support adolescent identity formation.
    [Show full text]
  • Ethnic Identity in Emerging Adulthood Research Has Demonstrated That Emerging Adulthood Is a Crucial Developmental Period for Ethnic Identity Exploration by Chaazé P
    Clinical Science Insights Knowledge Families Count On Ethnic Identity In Emerging Adulthood Research has demonstrated that emerging adulthood is a crucial developmental period for ethnic identity exploration by Chaazé P. Roberts, MSMFT identity has largely been situated within Eriksonian theory (Erikson, 1968), focusing on the processes of Emerging adulthood, a developmental period situated exploration and commitment (Phinney, 1989, 1990, between adolescence and young adulthood, is an “age 2006). Although this emphasis has greatly advanced of explorations:” a time in life in which one of the our understanding of ethnic identity, it has tended to tasks is to determine who one is and how one fi ts into overemphasize the process of ethnic identity formation society (Arnett, 2000, 2006). The concept of emerging and overlook the content of ethnic identity — meaning adulthood refers to a period in which young people are that the nature and form of the exploration (the legally adult but do not yet see themselves as fully adult, substance) are rarely considered. For example, when and have not taken on the range of responsibilities that children become aware of distinctive characteristics are characteristic of adulthood in developed societies that differentiate them from some people but are (Arnett, 2000). shared with others, they begin to experience a positive The challenges of this period have been defi ned and/or negative sense of self; this is an example of a largely in individualistic terms, such as forming a developmental process. On the other hand, the content personal identity, attaining independence from one’s of ethnic identity is contained in more concrete, parents, and assuming fi nancial responsibility for physical terms, such as clothing, skin color, daily oneself.
    [Show full text]