Definition
Across an individual's lifespan there exist certain tasks which must be accomplished in order for that individual to attain a level of healthy functioning. One of these tasks, which begins in adolescence and continues into adulthood, is the establishment of an identity or an, "individualized definition of self." ( Archer, 1990 ).
Erik H. Erikson, a leading figure in the fields of human development and psychoanalysis, defined identity as a "subjective sense of an invigorating sameness and continuity," as well as a "sense of feeling active and alive." ( Penuel, 1995 ).
Identity Statuses
As stated above, the task of identity formation is one of great significance which takes place over a long period of time. This task has been described as one "in which the individual selects, sorts through, tries on, discards, reshapes, and ultimately fashions a unique sense of self via self-chosen appropriate integration of those values, beliefs, and goals that feel personally expressive." (Archer, 1990 ).
Due to the complexity of the task of identity formation the individual involved experiences any variety of four developmental statuses. These four statuses are based upon the dimensions of exploration, or examination of alternative identities, and commitment, or stable investment in the present state of one's identity. The four statuses are individually addressed below.
How does my parenting style effect my child's identity formation?
In the context of this essay, parenting styles are categorized according to four common ways that parents choose to raise their children. Parenting style is an important facet of identity formation because it influences an adolescent's ability and willingness to explore various options in life when it comes to establishing one's own occupational, vocational, religious, and sexual identities (Papini, 1994).
What are the different types of parenting styles?
First, neglectful parenting is defined as not taking an active role or interest in a child's life. Neglectful parents are unresponsive and have few or no expectations of their children (Steinberg, 1996).
Next, indulgent parents are extremely responsive to their children, but do not demand much of their children (Steinberg, 1996). Indulgent parents give their children a great deal of freedom without identifying limitations.
Third, authoritarian parents "tend to favor more punitive and absolute discipline measures without give-and-take communication" (Steinberg, 162).
Last, authoritative parenting is most consistent in producing positive adolescent identity formation (Steinberg, 1996). These parents "recognize that the rights of parents and children are reciprocal" (Cole et al., 1993). This type of parenting is especially successful because it helps an adolescent develop autonomy through enhanced communication between parent and child and encourages the need to reinforce authority.
What type of identity formation does my parenting style produce?
Parenting style does have to be appropriated according to a child's behavior. However, some parenting styles are less consistent in helping a child establish positive identity formation. For example, authoritarian parenting typically leads to identity foreclosure, whereas indulgent or neglectful styles lead to identity diffusion (Steinberg, 1996). Authoritative parenting is the most consistent proponent of identity achievement because it is most effective in helping an adolescent acquire the confidence and self-esteem to make changes in life and face challenges.
What are four things I can do to enhance my child's identity formation?
Defining Ethnic Identity
In my attempt to define ethnic identity, I favored this definition by Smith: Ethnic identity is the sum total of group member feelings about those values, symbols, and common histories that identify them as a distinct group (Smith 1991). Development of ethnic identity is important because it helps one to come to terms with their ethnic membership as a prominent reference group and significant part of an individuals overall identity. Ethnic reference group refers to an individuals psychological relatedness to groups (Smith 1991). These reference groups help adolescents sense, reflect and see things from the point of their ethnic groups in which they actively participate or seek to participate.
What is ethnic identity?
The establishment of identity is a major developmental task for all adolescents. While it is an important, complex task for all adolescents, it is particularly complicated for adolescents belonging to ethnic and minority groups. Ethnic identity of the majority group of individuals is constantly validated and reinforced in a positive manner where as the minority group is constantly ridiculed and punished in a negative manner. What does this say for those adolescents who are the minority and not the majority? It is important to study or research ethnic identity because it provides better knowledge to help one understand striving for a sense of unity and connectivenesss in which the self provides meaning for direction and meaning of ethnic identity (Spencer, 1990). It is also important to study or research the differences between these groups due to beliefs and values.
Identity and ethnicity as adolescent issues:
Identity has been defined in many ways. It is the concept used to describe an individual's sense of who he or she is (Dashefsky and Shapiro, 1976). Changes in identity occur throughout the life cycle, however, the changes in identity are usually most notable during adolescence. Integrating a positive sense of ethnic identity into one's overall personal identity is an important task of late adolescence (Steinberg, 1996).
Ethnic identity has been defined as the aspect of one's sense of identity concerning ancestry or racial group membership (Steinberg, 1996). Ethnic identity development is an essential human need because it provides a sense of belonging and historical continuity.
Ethnic socialization:
Minority children are confronted with their ethnicity at an earlier age than their majority counterparts (Smith, 1991). Parents can help to speed up the early stages of ethnic identity development by taking an active approach to ethnic socialization. Ethnic socialization, according to Steinberg(1996), refers to the process through which parents teach their children about their ethnicity and about the certain experiences they may have with the broader society. Ethnic socialization consists of three themes: 1) understanding one's own culture, 2) getting along in mainstream society, and 3) dealing with racism (Steinberg, 1996).
Possible outcomes of ethnic identity development:
There are four ways to deal with ethnicity (Steinberg, 1996):
References:
Identity development begins early in life for a child and by age
two a child has a firm grasp on whether he is male or female. However,
it develops in adolescence when the process becomes more pronounced. The
"adolescent is far more self conscious about the changes" taking place
in his or her identity (Steinberg, 1996 pg. 320). Research on the formation
of identity has been controversial, and has changed in the past decades.
Historically
Before 1980, achieving an identity was studied as a separate process for males and females. The research available concentrated on males only or on females only. In other words, each sex was thought to attain an identity differently, and different research methods were used to evaluate identity formation in males and females (Muus, 1996 pg. 73). Males and females were never directly compared in these early studies.
Currently
Since 1980, researchers have given more attention to jointly studying both sexes. These recent studies have shown that:
"1. In most traditional domains (e.g. vocational choice, religious beliefs, political ideology), males and females follow a similar pattern of identity status distribution.
2. The timing of identity formation for both sexes appears to be about the same.
3. The personality correlates of each of the identity statuses (e.g. authoritarian, anxiety, concept formation, etc.) tend to be the same for both sexes."
(summarized by Muus, 1996 pg. 73)
Although there are similarities in identity formation, males and females still differ in two categories: autonomy and attachment. For males, identity is focused on separation and autonomy. Female identity is not as focused on separation as it is on attachment, or, in other words, the intimate relationships that they have (Steinberg, 1996.pg. 320).
"Masculinity is defined through separation, while femininity is defined through attachment, male gender identity is threatened by intimacy, while female gender identity is threatened by separation" (Gilligan as cited by Browne, 1987 pg. 77).
Male Identity Development: Autonomy over Attachment
One reason that male identity development is more autonomy based is that a boy's primary caregiver is normally his mother. Therefore, to become more masculine, he is socialized to separate from his mother. "For a boy, the path towards development lies not in the continuation of attachment, but in the separation from the early caregiver, and in the definition of himself as different, masculine, and independent" (Browne, 1987 pg. 77). This socialization of a male to separate from his mother is subtle. A young boy is teased by his peers for holding his mother's hand, or for hugging her in public. It is considered more masculine to play ball with dad, or to help mom weed her garden. Therefore, a boy is subtly told not to be dependent, but to instead be autonomous and to focus on what they can achieve, rather then being intimate. Due to this early independence as a child, a young boy's identity tends to revolve around achievements in activities in the outside world. As a result, a male may have a conflicted response to dependency and intimacy, and instead define himself through his achievements. (Steinberg, 1996 pg. 320)
Female Identity Development: Attachment over Autonomy
Identity development for a young girl is not based as much on autonomy as it is based on attachment. As a boy is made fun of for holding his mother's hand, a girl is not teased for saying she loves her mom, or for holding her mother's hand. For a young girl, it is okay to be dependent upon a mother. Therefore, a young girl is never encouraged to separate from her primary caregiver. This allows a female "to become more invested and more competent at forming intimate relationships" (Steinberg, 1996 pg. 321).
As a result, many girls obtain their identity through attachment relationships, or relationships with intimate partners. This may lead a female to have problems with separation. "Not only are females concerned with their own sense of self, but they are more concerned then males with the impact of their self on significant people in their lives" (Muus 1996, pg. 74). Therefore, for some females, identity and intimacy are fused (Muus 1996 pg. 74).
References
How is self-esteem defined?
Self-esteem is a central component of personality and identity (Clancy and Dollinger, 1993). It is a self-evaluation, or an evaluation of one's self-worth or self-acceptance (Tashakkori, Thompson, Wade, and Valente, 1990). More specifically, self-esteem is confidence in one's ability to think and to cope with the challenges of life and confidence in one's right to be happy (1993).
What determines our self-esteem?
According to the research of Walker and Greene (1986), a positive relationship with one's parents during childhood is particularly important to developing a healthy self-esteem. In fact, several empirical investigations have indicated that parental support, encouragement, and affection are strongly correlated to children's positive self-esteems (1986). However, self-esteem is continually modified or validated throughout the life span by interactions with family and friends (Bohrnstedt and Fisher, 1986). Self-esteem is a direct function of both positive and negative past, present, and future experiences (Tashakkori et al., 1990).
Does self-esteem change in adolescence?
Adolescence is accompanied by intense physical and psychological changes. Because adolescents are confronting experiences about their intellectual qualities, popularity, social skills, and attractiveness, and confronting the biological changes associated with puberty, their self-perceptions have the potential for change (Stein, Newcomb, and Bentler, 1992). According to Harper and Marshall (1991), it is common for self-esteem to temporarily decline in early adolescence. However, the temporary decline of adolescent self-esteem is not inevitable. In fact, in some cases, self-esteem remains stable or even increases during early adolescence (Tashakkori et al., 1990).
What gender differences exist in adolescent self-esteem?
Although self-esteem has a tendency to fall for both sexes of teenagers, a number of studies have found that adolescent girls have lower self-esteem than adolescent boys (Harper and Marshall, 1991). In a survey by the American Association of University Women, only 29% of the adolescent girls surveyed expressed self-satisfaction, while more than half of the boys felt good about themselves. According to Harper and Marshall (1991), society tends to promote masculine over feminine attributes. Therefore, a reasonable explanation for these findings has been that they reflect the way boys and girls learn to view the world and their place in it (Folkenberg, 1991).
Is adolescent self-esteem important?
According to Harper and Marshall (1991), adolescents who admit to experiencing more serious problems tend to have poor self-esteem. In fact, low adolescent self-esteem is associated with a host of problems including drug and alcohol abuse, eating disorders, depression, and suicide (1991). Therefore, a positive self-esteem is indispensable to normal and healthy adolescent development because it provides resistance, strength, and a capacity for regeneration (Branden, 1992)
Definition of self-esteem:
Self-esteem is the positive or negative way in which one evaluates one's values, feelings, attitudes, and beliefs, fears and desires, and strengths and weaknesses (Burger,1993).
Definition of Body Image:
Body image is the "picture of our own body which we form in our mind. In other words, the way in which the body appears to ourselves"(Bruch,1973).
What happens to self-esteem during adolescence?(Owens,1995)
Physical distortions that result from a poor body image include:
Self -esteem increases when an adolescent accepts and feels comfortable with their body image. Ways to increase feelings about one's body include:
Bermudez J.L., Eilan N., & Marcel,A.(1995). The Body and the Self. Cambridge, MA.:A Bradford Book, MIT Press
Graham,B.(1997,February). Affirmative Eating. Self Magazine, 113-119.
Links to Information About Eating Disorders
Self-esteem is an important factor in an adolescents life. It indirectly
effects the way he or she thinks and feel about him or her self. Having
low self-esteem may have negative results such as depression which could
even lead to suicide. In order to understand how these issues are related,
we need to examine these terms closer.
What is self-esteem?
Self-esteem is viewed as a person's evaluation of all the things that he or she uses to describe him or her self (Pope, McHale & Craighead, 1988). For example, an adolescent who describes him or her self as an average athlete may feel that he or she needs to be a superior athlete in order to be popular. This person has a low self-esteem because he or she is not measuring up to his or her own evaluations. If this person had high self-esteem, he or she would accept the fact that they are average in athletics and this would be fine in their mind. Since low self-esteem has negative results for adolescents it is necessary to understand the characteristics of low self-esteem. They are as follows:
Self-esteem is usually formed during childhood. It does not begin to effect a person until adolescence because of the presence of improved cognitive skills (Overholser et al., 1995) which allows an adolescent to evaluate his or her self critically. Adolescents also tend to focus mostly on themselves at this time. This increased self-awareness may lead a person to evaluate him or her self negatively resulting in depression. Research has shown that adolescents with low self-esteem are more likely to be depressed (Overholser et al., 1995; Devine, Kempton and Forehand, 1994; Reinherz et al., 1993). Some symptoms of depression are as follows:
Is a child you know at risk?
It's a hard task to determine which child is at risk and which one is not. The most accurate way to assess self-esteem is professionally (Pope, McHale and Craighead, 1988). Negative behavior and family conflict are just a few things to look out for. The most important thing you can do for any child you know is to provide a support system for them with plenty of encouragement and love to help show them they are important.
For additional information:
The onset of puberty has been occurring earlier and earlier in the
past century. This may be due to better health care and nutrition. Lowered
self esteem had been discussed as an outcome of the early adolescent experience
for years by researchers. Early maturing females, identified by menarche
occurring before 12.5 years of age, may be especially vulnerable to this
decline in self-esteem (Ge, Conger, and Elder, 1996). This decline can
be caused by many factors affecting the adolescents' lives that are due
to their changing status into adulthood.
Body Image
Self-image becomes especially important at the time of menarche for practically all adolescents. They may tend to judge their self-worth by they way they see themselves. Many adolescent females tend to view their bodies negatively due to the changing shape structure and distribution of body fat. Early maturing females have been found to have the most negative body image when compared with others their age at the time of menarche (Silbereisen, Peterson, Albrecht, and Kracke, 1989). This heightened negative image may be due to the adolescents more advanced appearance relative to their classmates.
Social Interactions
Due to these appearance differences, early maturing females may suffer rejection by peers (Silbereisen et al., 1989). These females are in the minority in regard to physical appearance, which can lead to being viewed as odd and not fit in with the others. If rejection occurs, these females have a smaller social network of same age peers to look to for support. Instead of withdrawing from social contact, many females in a situation of this type begin to seek an older, more mature group of friends (Lackovic-Grgin, Dekovic, and Opacic, 1994). The accumulation of older peers may lead these females to be more vulnerable to deviant behaviors and sexual pressures practiced by their new crowd. Silbereisen et al. (1989) has stated that the practice of what would be viewed as problem behavior for these females may actually represent an attempt to match their behaviors with their physical appearance regardless of chronological age. While their behaviors may seem inappropriate for their age, these females may just be trying to fit in with others who are as physically mature as they are.
Exposure to these deviant behaviors and pressures at an earlier age than on time and late maturing females may be very detrimental to the early maturing females' identity and self-esteem. Ge et al. (1996) has theorized that early maturing females may not have had the time to complete the necessary childhood developmental tasks before being moved into the adolescent stage by the onset of menarche. They have had less time to form a solid sense of self, which could cause difficulty in making wise present decisions as well as decisions for the future.
Early onset of puberty has many effects on the body as well as the social context. Females need to be taught to be understanding toward the changes in their bodies as well as those of their peers. Self-esteem may be increased during this time of change if they are taught that the changes are normal and will happen to everyone, just at different times. If this understanding was reached, the social context of the early maturing females may not change as drastically as it is occurring at the present.
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