James Marcia conceptualized the Identity Theory. It was an extension of the work previously done by Erik Erickson in his developmental theory. However Marcia concentrated his efforts on the development of the adolescent. He expounded on the concept of identity confusion and identity crisis. Marcia explained that the adolescent stage is characterized by a process of identity development where one makes a commitment to various domains of life.
Marcia further explained that the adolescent stage is the identifying stage where one decides which path to follow in regards to aspects such as religion and sexual orientation. Before this commitment is made, the adolescent re-evaluates the value behind everything that they have encountered. He then assigns more value to a certain domain and less to others. He begins to develop and place more emphasis on the domain he has chosen. This becomes the turning point that defines his identity (Hammack, 2015).
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Marcia's theory is characterised by four different identity statuses. The first is identity diffusion. The adolescent at this stage has not made any clear distinctions on the ideals he embraces. The adolescent at this stage has not explored the aspect ratio of choice so the decision making aspect is fairly undeveloped. This stage symbolises a a lack of commitment to any real values because it is not necessary. Instead, the adolescent has some level of freedom borne from the pursuit of personal pleasure.
The second status is known as identity foreclosure. This stage symbolises the first attempt to commit to any values. Most adolescents at this stage commit to some of the ideals imposed on them by their parents. These ideals may involve adherence to various domains such as commitment to school work, attendance of a prescribed hobby or commuting to any job or career choice. The adolescent makes this decisions based on the advice of significant people in their lives. An adolescent basically adopts the identity of those around them during the identity foreclosure status (Verschueren et al., 2017).
The third status is the identity moratorium. The adolescent in this stage is going through an identity crisis. Here the ideals begin to be in conflict with the personal feelings. There is an internal struggle as the teen does not know whether to adopt the domains that are more inclined towards his decisions or those that are taught to them by the significant people in their life. He has not made any commitment of choice as well. The fourth and last status is the identity achievement. The adolescent has gone through the challenges and confusion of moratorium. They have then chosen what ideals are important to them. This decision often comes after a generous amount of experimentation and weighing of the available options. These two stages are the most highly debated by psychologists (Syed & McLean, 2018).
My interviewee is a 43 year old man named Rufus. He is African American who works as a music producer. He is also a committed Catholic. Rufus enjoys playing golf. The interview was illuminating as Rufus was open and honest about his adolescent life. He describes his high school years as a blur. He did just enough to get average grades. He never put in more effort than he needed to. This helped him to stay out of his teachers radar and it kept him out of trouble with his parents. At this time, he did not have a clear idea of what he wanted to become. This stage of his life clearly illustrates the identity diffusion stage. Rufus had already gone through some stages of moral development. He knew the deference between right and wrong. He was however oblivious to his role in his development as he had not developed an identity. He was also in the identity foreclosure status because he blindly accepted some of the ideals his parents and teachers instilled.
Rufus went through an identity crisis when he had to choose a career. He had not made any significant decision towards any specific career. His parents guided him through his decisions. His mother had earlier enrolled him into a church mentorship program. She wanted him to learn more about the Baptist Church and take up the role of a pillar of the society. She thought the best way to do this was for him to become an accountant working for the church. On the contrary, his father was opposed to this and instead wanted him to join him in his construction company. Rufus was now forced to make a decision that would shape his future. He decided to complete the mentorship program which he had already begun. This time opened up more opportunities for him. His struggle to identify his preferences meant that Rufus had to pass through the moratorium stage (Crocetti, 2017).
The last stage of development for Rufus was identified a few years later. Rufus had earlier joined his father's construction company which enabled him save up some money to enable him pursue his passion, which was music. He later began his training as a music producer while still in the construction business. His decision to change careers was a demonstration of identity achievement. He went through the experimentation stages where he followed his parents domains. He then discovered his own preferences and decided to pursue them. This active identification of what he valued most is what is referred to identity achievement. Rufus demonstrated that everyone has their own time line when it comes to identity formation. The interviewee also demonstrates that it is possible to go through this phases faster or slower than other people.
References
Crocetti, E. (2017). Identity formation in adolescence: The dynamic of forming and consolidating identity commitments. Child Development Perspectives, 11(2), 145-150.
Hammack, P. L. (2015). Theoretical foundations of identity. Oxford handbook of identity development , 11-30.
Syed, M., " McLean, K. C. (2018). The future of identity development research: Reflections, tensions, and challenges.
Verschueren, M., Rassart, J., Claes, L., Moons, P., " Luyckx, K. (2017). Identity statuses throughout adolescence and emerging adulthood: a large-scale study into gender, age, and contextual differences. Psychologica Belgica/Société belge de psychologie.-Leuven, 57(1), 32-42.
