The Narrative Identity Structure Model (NISM)

Abstract

In this article, I provide an overview of the Narrative Identity Structure Model (NISM). NISM offers a framework for understanding how life stories are represented internally (cognitively) and how elements of these stories are expressed externally (through writing, conversation, etc.). Within a narrator, there exist numerous life stories, with each story corresponding to a recurrent context (i.e., a social role) relevant to the life in question. Contextualized life stories share mutually constituted relations with the generalized life story, which works to establish a sense of differentiation and continuity across, rather than within, contexts. Furthermore, when elements of the storied self are expressed, these expressions are an inseparable combination of internal representations and elements of the immediate and broader social and cultural milieu. Thus, along with at least two dimensions (viz. internal structure and social expression), NISM is a highly contextualized conceptual model of the storied self.