Individual Identity Development Research Articles

Exploring the Differences Between Only Children, Typical Siblings, and Siblings With Disabilities on Psychological and Family Systems Constructs

The purpose of this study was to measure the identity development of individuals who had siblings with disabilities. We compared three sub-populations, namely, only children, individuals who had typical siblings, and individuals who had siblings with disabilities. We developed a survey that included questions on attachment, identity, socio-emotional development, family dynamics, sibling relationships, and responsibility toward siblings with disabilities. Totally, 338 participants completed the survey; out of which 145 had siblings with disabilities, 104 had typical siblings, and 89 were only children. Our results demonstrated that participants differed on several key aspects, including asking for help, expressing emotions, formation, and reliance on friendships, reliance on parental figures, receiving attention from parents, expectations from parents, and reaction to the diagnosis. Our study is one of the few studies that has explored the differences in identity development, socio-emotional development, and family dynamics in adults who are only children, individuals with typical siblings, and individuals with siblings with disabilities. Our study extends the literature in understanding sibling relationships and responsibilities toward siblings with disabilities.

The interplay of multicultural and career identity development

Career identity development, involving exploration and commitment, is a lifelong process by an individual that is fundamental to shaping one’s career. Although prior research has investigated what may lead one to develop a strong and clear career identity, there is limited understanding of the cultural influences on career identity development relevant to multicultural individuals. Integrating the identity status paradigm with a narrative identity perspective, we propose that career identity development interplays with multicultural identity development. We explore this interplay through in-depth interviews with Chinese-ethnic multicultural individuals. From the interviews, we elucidate a typology (Multicultural-Career Identity Interplay, ‘MCII’) to explain how multicultural identity and career identity development are interrelated in systematic ways (Commanding, Cruising, and Contending), and introduce a dual-dimensional, relational-oriented framework of career paths. We explain how each MCII pattern corresponds to individual career paths and is associated with immigration age. Our study extends career identity development theory into the cultural identity domain, providing a more nuanced understanding of the dynamic and culturally influenced career development of multicultural individuals. The findings can help individuals and career counsellors better understand and support the career identity development of individuals who identify with more than one culture.

Digital Media, Social Bubbles, Extremism and Challenges Implicated in the Construction of Identity and Respect for Diversity and Cultural Pluralism

The extensive use of digital platforms has presented considerable challenges to democracy, particularly in the realms of politics and ideology in Brazil. The emergence of digital echo chambers and the rise of extreme viewpoints pose threats to social cohesion, informed decision-making, and the development of individual identities. This analysis focuses specifically on identity formation, the creation and dissemination of information, emphasizing its repercussions on social identity and cultural diversity. Consequently, the influence of these echo chambers in promoting extremist views in this context is just one facet of the broader ideological, racial, and class polarization facing the nation. To face these challenges, it is imperative to defend critical and reflective education on the role and use of social networks, both in the educational system and in the daily lives of young people and society

Ақпараттық қоғамдағы коммуникативті әрекеттің аксиологиялық аспектісі

In conditions of modern social changes and the transition into an open society, the issues of value-worldview attitudes and orientations of a person in the communication process have become more significant. The key problem of communication is the mechanism of communication, which translates the individual process of transmission and perception of information into a socially significant process of personal and mass impact. To analyze this issue the authors investigate the meaning of the communicative action as a separate initial act of the person’s communicative activity. This article defines the meaning of communicative action as an achievement of the common agreement and substantiates that the transition from non-verbal forms of communicative action to verbal ones expressed the process of development of abstraction in synthesis with imagination in the cognitive sphere of human consciousness. As a result, it became possible to formulate general norms leading to community integration and the development of individual identity. If the meaning of communicative action is to coordinate the interests of interacting communicants, then the meaning of the communicative space is to unite them based on already developed and agreed common values, which is of lasting importance with the self-preservation of the community and determining its future. The information society foregrounded pragmatic and axiological issues, created conditions for the necessity and possibility of understanding the multidimensionality of a person, understood as the multitude of their identities and plurality of their self-expression. In these conditions, the inseparability of the general meaning of communication in various spheres of human activity is actualized, which consists in integration of people, in pursuit of higher values - truth, goodness and beauty in this being, otherwise, the communicative action and communication as a whole will remain just technical means of communication between individuals.

THE PERSON WITH DOWN SYNDROME AND THE JOB WORLD. THE BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL MODEL FOR SUCCESSFUL JOB INCLUSION

This work aims to clarify how it is possible to structure a path of personal and professional growth for people with Down syndrome with a biopsychosocial model (Engel, 1977). It also tries to explain how disability can be defined as the consequence or the result of a complex relationship between an individual’s health condition and the context in which he or she lives and works. The biopsychosocial model is a theoretical orientation that considers the individual and his health conditions dependent on physical, but also personal and environmental variables. Every condition of health or illness is the consequence of the interaction between biological, psychological and social factors. The ICF, International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (OMS, 2001), in line with this model, introduces specific environmental factors that can describe the same environment with respect to which the functioning itself is evaluated. Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems theory (1979), Lewin’s writings about Field Theory (1951) and the Environmental psychology opened a horizon in the analysis of how the interaction between an individual and the environment affects human functioning. The functioning of disabled or not person is the result of a relationship between individual features and context. According to ICF conception, the context acts as a barrier or facilitator of functioning. Following BPS model as expressed in the ICF, the approach to individuals and their health problems aims to give a global view of the person, not only of his disability, while enhancing skills and creating a favourable context. The educational proposal of the team of the restaurant 21 grams® in Brescia is based on these innovative aspects. This situation differs from other similar ones on the national territory thanks to the theoretical model that supports the training of users, as well as a team of professional educators and professionals in catering, coordinated by a psychologist. The team also makes use of an innovative evaluation sheet, divided in two parts: how to be and how to give. Individual, context and community are the main objectives on which the team of the 21 grams® is focused. The development of individual identity and abilities (Cottini, 2016) by the construction of facilitating tools that allow autonomy work (Bruner, Wood, Ross, 1976, Vygotskji, 1934); the awareness of the context, which can be both a facilitator or a barrier, by training employees and customers and introducing even physical changes to the job environment (Soresi, 2016); the community by creating a network of companies that recognize disability and diversity as added critical value for their competitiveness. The team needs highly ecological assessment methods, congruent with people’s life contexts. His intervention aims to define the customized project on the basis of an operating profile, which allows you to organize the work, define entity, resources and roles to be put in place. This allows to remodulate barriers and support facilitators over time. It is clearly a matter of developing an innovative evaluation method.

The Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region as an example of separatism in China

Though often called a “heaven on Earth” New Zealand suffers from a serious problem with gangs. Ethnic gangs have dominated the New Zealand gang scene since the 70s when many Maoris left traditional rural areas and migrated in search of work to the cities but ended up in poverty because of lack of skills and poorly-paid jobs. Maori urbanization and the dual pressures of acculturation and discrimination resulted in a breakdown of the traditional Maori social structures and alienated many from their culture. Maoris who have been unable to maintain their ethnic and cultural identity through their genealogical ties and involvement in Maori culture attempt to find it elsewhere. For many of those that have lost contact with their cultural and ethnic links gangs have replaced families and community and provides individuals with a sense of belonging and safety. The aim of this article is to demonstrate the role of gangs in Maori ethnic and cultural identity development. This paper demonstrates the impact of gang environment on individual identity development and provides evidence that cultural engagement initiatives can enhance Maori identities, which in turn could increase psychological and socio-economic wellbeing.

Formovanie kultúrnej a etnickej identity Maoriov prostredníctvom príslušnosti ku gangu

Though often called a “heaven on Earth” New Zealand suffers from a serious problem with gangs. Ethnic gangs have dominated the New Zealand gang scene since the 70s when many Maoris left traditional rural areas and migrated in search of work to the cities but ended up in poverty because of lack of skills and poorly-paid jobs. Maori urbanization and the dual pressures of acculturation and discrimination resulted in a breakdown of the traditional Maori social structures and alienated many from their culture. Maoris who have been unable to maintain their ethnic and cultural identity through their genealogical ties and involvement in Maori culture attempt to find it elsewhere. For many of those that have lost contact with their cultural and ethnic links gangs have replaced families and community and provides individuals with a sense of belonging and safety. The aim of this article is to demonstrate the role of gangs in Maori ethnic and cultural identity development. This paper demonstrates the impact of gang environment on individual identity development and provides evidence that cultural engagement initiatives can enhance Maori identities, which in turn could increase psychological and socio-economic wellbeing.

Doctoral Students’ Identity Development as Scholars in the Education Sciences: Literature Review and Implications

Aim/Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to offer a systematic review of empirical literature examining doctoral students’ identity development as scholars in the education sciences. We frame our analysis through a constructivist sociocultural perspective to organize our findings and discuss implications for multiple actors and components that constitute the system of doctoral education, with doctoral students as the central actors of the system. Background: Despite increasing interest in the professional identity development of postsecondary students via their experiences in educational programs, relatively little is known about how doctoral students develop their identity as professionals who engage in scholarship. We focus specifically on the experiences of education sciences doctoral students, given their unique experiences (e.g., typically older in age, more professional experiences prior to starting doctoral program) and the potential of education sciences doctoral programs contributing to the diversification of academia and future generations of students and scholars. Methodology: Our systematic literature search process entailed reviewing the titles, abstracts, and methods sections of the first 1,000 records yielded via a Google Scholar search. This process, combined with backwards and forwards citation snowballing, yielded a total of 62 articles, which were read in their entirety. These 62 articles were further reduced to 36 final articles, which were coded according to an inductively created codebook. Based on themes derived from our coding process, we organized our findings according to a framework that illuminates individual identity development in relation to a larger activity system. Contribution: This systematic review presents the current body of scholarship regarding the identity development of education sciences doctoral students via a constructivist sociocultural framework. We contribute to the study of doctoral education and education research more broadly by focusing on an area that has received relatively little attention. A focus on the identity development of doctoral students pursuing the education sciences is warranted given the field’s promise for preparing a diverse group of future educators and education scholars. Furthermore, this analysis broadens the conversation regarding scholarship on this topic as we present doctoral student identity development as occurring at the intersection of student, faculty, program, disciplinary, institutional, and larger sociocultural contexts, rather than as individualized and local endeavors. Findings: Looking across our reviewed articles, identity as scholar emerged as recognition by self and others of possessing and exhibiting adequate levels of competence, confidence, autonomy, and agency with respect to scholarly activities, products, and communities. Students often experience tensions on their journey towards becoming and being scholars, in contending with multiple identities (e.g., student, professional) and due to the perceived mismatch between students’ idealized notion of scholar and what is attainable for them. Tensions may serve as catalysts for development of identity as scholar for students, especially when student agency is supported via formal and less ubiquitous subsidiary experiences of students’ doctoral programs. Recommendations for Practitioners: We recommend that actors within the broader system of doctoral student identity development (e.g., doctoral students, faculty, organizational/institutional leaders) explicitly acknowledge students’ identity development and intentionally incorporate opportunities for reflection and growth as part of the doctoral curriculum, rather than assume that identity development occurs “naturally.” In this paper, we provide specific recommendations for different stakeholders. Recommendation for Researchers: Our literature review focused on studies that examined the identity development of doctoral students in the education sciences. We recommend further discipline-specific research and synthesis of such research to uncover similarities and differences across various disciplines and contexts. Impact on Society: Doctoral students have the potential to become and lead future generations of educators and scholars. Taking a sociocultural and system-level approach regarding the successful identity development of doctoral students is necessary to better support and cultivate a diverse group of future scholars who are well-equipped to lead innovations and solve problems both within and outside academia. Future Research: Possible areas of future research include focusing on the experiences of students who leave their programs prior to completion (and thus not developing their identity as scholars), investigating specific knowledge, skills, and attitudes associated with activities that studies have claimed contribute to identity development, and examining phenomena or traits that are seen as more biologically determined and less modifiable (e.g., attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, dyslexia, and mental health differences) in relation to doctoral students’ identity development. Finally, we recommend that future research should look into the underlying norms and nuances of ontological, epistemological, and methodological roots of programs and disciplines as part of the “story” of developing identity as scholar. Norms, and related philosophical underpinnings of typical doctoral education (and the tasks these translate into) were not explored in the reviewed literature.

Negotiating identity at the intersection of family legacy and present time life conditions: A qualitative exploration of central issues connected to identity and belonging in the lives of children of refugees

IntroductionMost studies on refugee populations are organized around trauma-related issues and focus on explanations of pathological factors. Few studies are anchored in general developmental psychology with the aim of exploring normal age-specific developmental tasks and how the special circumstances associated with forced migration can influence that development. MethodsUsing an ecological and transactional understanding of developmental trajectories, this qualitative study explored issues connected to identity formation processes in an exile context based on interviews with 6 male and 10 female children of refugees (18–26 years) who have grown up in Norway. ResultsThe findings show that family experiences of war and conflict intersect with experiences of marginalization in exile. The interaction of these experiences influences the development of individual identity in cumulative and complex ways. Many of the participants expressed feelings of isolation, disconnectedness, and a lack of belonging. Nevertheless, though the participants described growing up facing major challenges, they also searched for ways to reframe their difficult personal and family histories into meaningful experiences. ConclusionsIn order to provide conditions and develop interventions that can support well-being and identity development, we need a better understanding of the different forces that influence the identity development of children of refugees. By foregrounding the participants’ experiences, and perspectives, we gained insight into different ways in which participants negotiate identity issues in relation to often contradictory demands and messages from family and the wider social context.

Impulse aus der Augustinforschung

Abstract Research in Augustine is manifold. Recent scholarship in Germany focused upon Augustine‘s heresiology (esp. against Manichaeism, but also Pelagianism, Donatism, Priscillianism), the controversy with Neoplatonism, his exegesis (esp. in sermons and in de Genesi ad litteram), emotions (esp. for the description of sin and grace), and his widespread correspondence. As important impulses for modern theology, his concept of God may be of special interest. God establishes his will in time and history and cannot be urged against his will. This is the presupposition not only for Augustine’s christology and pneumatology, but also for his understanding of history and his doctrine of grace. The latter takes into consideration the social context of human beings, the emotional character of voluntary decisions and the ongoing development of individual identity. Furthermore, good and evil are not equal options, but the good is only possible if God enables the individual to act according to his insights and exerts a direct influence upon one's will. Insights or knowledge are not salvific by themselves, but belong to one’s development that leads to a better understanding of creation and revelation exactly when it is orientated towards God’s salvific operations.

Nonsequential Task Model of Bi/Pan/Polysexual Identity Development

There are several existing bisexual identity development models, however, there are still gaps in fully understanding the identity development of individuals who are bisexual, pansexual, and polysexual. This article seeks to describe the importance of specific labels in the process of identity formation and the differences that exist within these nonmonosexual identities. The authors introduce a model that also addresses intersecting identity developmental processes and oppressions, the person in a sociopolitical context, and the importance of community/political identity to individuals’ identity development. First, the article reviews several bisexual identity development models and their limitations. Then, the authors propose a combined task and process model to address these limitations. This model will serve as a guide for conceptualizing the unique pathways that bi/pan/polysexual individuals experience in their identity development.

Design and validation of the social assimilation of beauty and body image stereotypes questionnaire in Spain

It may be considered esthetic violence when social demands regarding beauty affect and manipulate the development of individual identity and body image to respond to supposed prevailing ideals in society. We design and validate an instrument for measuring the degree of social assimilation of such stereotypes regarding beauty and body image linked to gender. The questionnaire was developed from a sample of 918 Spanish adults who participated online to develop it. The questionnaire was composed of 23 items. The assessment of preconceived images of bodily perfection provides examples of how esthetic violence affects the health of both men and women.

Rejecting, reframing, and reintroducing: trans people's strategic engagement with the medicalisation of gender dysphoria.

This article uses ethnographic methods to explore how transgender people engage the medicalisation of transgender experience in a U.S. context under the purview of the American Psychiatric Association. Building on sociological literature related to medicalisation, this paper argues that the lived experience of medicalisation is a non-linear, complex process whereby individual engagement with medical authority is both empowering and constraining in the lives of trans people. Inductive qualitative analysis of 158hours of participant observation and 33 in-depth interviews with members of a transgender community organisation revealed that transgender individuals (i) reject a medical frame for gender dysphoria, (ii) embrace and stress the importance of gender-affirming medical technologies for individual identity development and social interaction and (iii) strategically reintroduce medical logics and embrace medical authority in order to facilitate medical and social recognition, validation and acceptance.

Identity Strain, Gender Differences, and Coping Mechanisms Within Entrepreneurial Careers

This symposium examines various contexts to further develop the burgeoning interest in entrepreneur identity development. The theme investigates processes surrounding individual identity development, specifically when the individual identifies as an entrepreneur or chooses an entrepreneurial career. Each paper within the symposium discusses career choices among entrepreneurs with identity conflicts. These topics hold relevance for the Entrepreneurship, Organizational Behavior, and Careers subdivisions of the Academy of Management. Entrepreneur dual identity integration and implications for creativity and venture success Presenter: Siran Zhan; U. of New South Wales Presenter: Marilyn Ang Uy; Nanyang Technological U., Singapore Presenter: Ying-yi Hong; Nanyang Technological U. Chef or business owner? Negotiating identity conflicts in the culinary industry Presenter: Daphne Ann Demetry; McGill U. Presenter: Rachel Doern; U. of London, Goldsmiths College Nurturing an entrepreneurial identity: Entrepreneurial employees and innovative workplace climates Presenter: J. Jeffrey Gish; U. of Oregon Presenter: David Ross Marshall; U. of Dayton Presenter: Scott Seibert; U. of Oregon The role of identity in work-life balance for entrepreneurs with hobby-inspired businesses Presenter: Sabrina DeeAnn Volpone; U. of Colorado Boulder Presenter: Sara Jansen Perry; Baylor U. Presenter: Cristina Rubino; California State U., Northridge Presenter: B. Lindsay Brown; U. of Georgia

The Memory of the Beginning: At the Source of Identity…

[full article and abstract in Lithuanian; abstract in English]
 This article discusses the relationship between the development of individual identity and the culture of social memory. The starting point of the analysis is the hermeneutics of biblical texts referencing the postulate to remember and commemorate specific events in the history of the people of Israel. Such remembrance, however, is not understood solely as a memory of the past, but instead becomes the point of reference for the present and the future. The results of the analysis of the biblical texts are then referenced to education in contemporary social and cultural settings. The author points out that breaking with the past causes confusion and disorientation with regard to the reference points in the future and ultimately affects the meaning of the present, which – deprived of perspective – acquires its own autotelic value. The lack of the culture of memory also results in reducing the past to an idyllic form, illusionary rather than authentic, thus becoming a mere object of longing. It also reduces the future to the merely incidental, uprooted from the past events and thoughtlessly independent of the human being.

“Sometimes I feel like a pharmacist”: identity and medication use among adolescents with juvenile arthritis

BackgroundTaking medicines as intended is difficult for everybody, but young people going through adolescence have greater problems than adults and younger children. One of the most important things that happen during the teenage years is the development of individual identities, which might not remain constant during this time and can be affected deeply by the diagnosis of a long-term condition. The aim of this study was to examine the relationships between identity and medication use among young people with juvenile arthritis.MethodsA prospective qualitative study was undertaken to collect private online ‘blog’ style data from young people (aged 11–19 years) with juvenile arthritis, and their parents, to examine their views about their condition, identity, medication and use of health services. Participants were identified from a large paediatric hospital in the UK.ResultsYoung people (n = 21) with a median age 14 years (range 11–17 years) posted a median (range) of 8 (1–36) blogs and parents (n = 6) posted 4 (1–12) blogs. Young people gave a strong sense of both private and public identity that was intertwined with their arthritis and treatment. It was evident that young people’s self-care was intrinsically linked to their attempts to maintain a sense of individually and socially constructed definitions of normality. The act of taking medication, and the consequences (positive or negative) of that act, had an impact both personally and socially.ConclusionsYoung people with juvenile arthritis reflect on their medication as a factor affecting their perception of themselves. Acknowledging the roles of both personal and social identity will be important in any strategies to support optimal medication use. This includes an understanding of the identity transformations that young people can experience and how decision-making may be affected by their attempts to retain pre-diagnosis identities and/or develop new social identities.

Convergence of Identities Through the Lens of Relational-Cultural Theory

ABSTRACTThe concept of individual identity is complex and context-driven. This can result in challenges and interpersonal struggles for people when their varied life statuses create situations where parts of their identity are seemingly at odds with one another. This article examines the convergence and intersection of individual identity development from a relational-cultural theory (RCT) perspective. The authors explore the influence of power, privilege, and social status through the language and concepts of RCT and discuss clinical implications through use of a case study example.

Identity Crisis in Cormac McCarthy's All the Pretty Horses

The issue of identity is one of the main issues that encounters man in each culture. Identity is a set of behaviors, emotions, and thought patterns which are unique to every individual that define him as a member of a certain group. Identity is shaped by race, ethnicity, religious beliefs, language, physical features, childhood experiences, sexual preferences and culture. Moreover, identity is usually recognized during adolescence or early adulthood in which both positive and negative features are essential in the development of individual identity. However, an identity crisis is the failure to establish identity during that age. In addition, an identity crisis is not only concerned with matters such as ethnicity or religion as it is also concerned with inner conflicts, search for identity, west vs. east, old Vs. modern. The diversity of identity in the American culture is expressed in many literary works by contemporary American writers who depict characters' search of their psychological and cultural identity. Among those contemporary writers is Cormac McCarthy (1933-) whose All the Pretty Horses (1992) tackles this quest for identity as its basic theme, both psychologically and culturally. This paper is an attempt to investigate both dimensions of the quest in this novel as being one of McCarthy's masterpieces. Keywords: Identity, Identity Crisis, Cultural Criticism, Contemporary American fiction

Counseling the Fastest Growing Population in America: Those with Multiple Heritage Backgrounds

The multiple heritage (i.e., multiracial, biracial) population has been identified by the US Census Bureau as the fastest growing population in the US. With this growth, there is also the diversity of those in multiple heritage families and with multiple heritage backgrounds. In this article, the authors describe the challenges faced by this population, the individual identity development process, and ways of helping individuals at different developmental levels along with their families. There is also an introduction to the new Competencies for Counseling the Multiracial Population (Kenney et al., 2015).

Balancing Identity and Diversity in Faith-Based Nursing Education: A Case Study from Northern Europe

The role of faith-based nursing education is contested in today's Northern European societies, which are often described as postmodern, pluralist, or secular. Although faith-based institutions played pioneering roles in the early development of nursing education, many today downplay their religious roots and have transformed themselves into modern humanistic institutions. This article is based on a case study of three faith-based social welfare education institutions offering nursing programs. They are located in three different Northern European countries: Finland, The Netherlands, and Norway. This study investigates how the faith bases of these three institutions are recognized and understood by their students, teachers, and leaders. The study investigates the challenges these institutions face in their struggle to maintain their identity in times of diversity and pluralism. Data were collected by focus group interviews and individual interviews with leaders, teachers, and students. The analysis of the three case colleges from Northern Europe shows that the colleges, although different in foundation and strategies, face similar problems and challenges in their struggle to realize their mission in today's society. One main challenge is to maintain a Christian identity and at the same time deal with diversity both internal and external to the institution. The article suggests that diversity and heterogeneous positions can prove to be resources in both institutional and individual identity development.