It was Erik Erikson who introduced the term ‘diffusion of identity,’ within his theoretical formulations about development. He raises the idea that, as we move forward in life, we build our personality and differentiate ourselves from the rest. This personality that I built would have continuity, that is, it would follow the same line, and it would be established as something with a certain coherence. Adolescence would be the stage in which the search for one's identity would be more relevant.
Attitudes are considered as belonging to adolescents, and often repudiated and criticized (such as those that oppose the adult world or take as my own identity what the peer group does) are, in reality, initial strategies to find my identity and define myself as adults. In the future, these strategies will become more complex, and I will no longer need my peers to define my identity, but I will look for myself and, finally, I will be able to think in terms of the future.
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When I am in the process of developing my identity, it will be normal and expected that there would be identity crises, which would be nothing more than normative reorganizations of growth. Identity crisis and identity diffusion are not the same concepts (Crocetti, Jahromi & Meeus, 2012). While the identity crisis would be temporary and pass as part of my growth, the diffusion of identity occurs when I fail to form a realistic concept of myself, taking into account my personal characteristics. I live in fear and present certain identifying characteristics. On the one hand, there is a feeling of isolation: I see personal relationships that are dangerous to my identity and, as a defense, I move away from them. Therefore, I cannot establish relationships of a certain degree of intimacy as I constantly flee from them.
Another characteristic is that of the diffusion of the temporal perspective: I lose the sense of time, and I do not plan for the future due to the fear of change (which I fear, although, contradictorily to this, I think that it is not possible to occur). I can choose the steps to the act, actions without any premeditation. Likewise, I can choose to remain in a state of absolute paralysis, unable to commit and make a decision.
People with identity diffusion are people with a great inability to learn, due to difficulties of concentration in the study or at work. The opposite can happen, and they can focus a lot on a certain activity, neglecting the rest. The person with identity diffusion may adopt one that contradicts that of their parents or their social environment. This is related to rebellion, drugs, and delinquency. Erikson calls it ‘negative identity,’ as the young man denies all the values that until that moment his or her parents or other reference adults have been trying to instill (Kroger, 2007).
The identity diffusion would be the initial stage; there would have been no identity crisis or commitments with any particular belief. It was said that I am not interested in anything, that I am apathetic, that I do not make an effort or that I am not capable of making decisions. Therefore, I would be at the level of identity diffusion. Once I begin to commit myself to goals or beliefs, I will move to the level of mortgaged identity, in which the social influence is very evident when adopting a certain belief or attitude. In a state of identity crisis I would enter the level of the moratorium, and, once the identity is defined, the achievement of identity would be achieved (Marcia, Waterman, Matteson, Archer & Orlofsky, 2012). These proposed levels would not necessarily be followed since I could suffer setbacks in this process. Even after having achieved my identity, I could not speak of stable equilibrium.
Some people are looking for their identity as if it was a formula. Identity in my view is knowing how to feel (empathy) each story and put it not only as a mere narrator but almost as a character that despite not interfering in the events can influence how people will understand their history in the future (Petitpas & France, 2010). To have identity is to be an author. It is about shooting what matters to you, with confidence to make your own decisions and tell that story in the way that only you can see.
To have identity is to have the courage to acknowledge that there are no definitive truths and that identity is not something that is created but cultivated. It takes time. I even know that I still have a long way to go. I see people in a relentless search for identity or worse still, stating that they have found it. They worry about the wrong thing or rather, they worry about the right thing at the wrong time. Before identity, one should look for references by experiment, practice, and nurture.
References
Crocetti, E., Jahromi, P., & Meeus, W. (2012). Identity and civic engagement in adolescence. Journal of Adolescence , 35 (3), 521-532. doi: 10.1016/j.adolescence.2011.08.003
Kroger, J. (2007). Why Is Identity Achievement So Elusive? Identity , 7 (4), 331-348. doi: 10.1080/15283480701600793
Marcia, J. E., Waterman, A. S., Matteson, D. R., Archer, S. L., & Orlofsky, J. L. (2012). Ego identity: A handbook for psychosocial research . Springer Science & Business Media.
Petitpas, A. J., & France, T. (2010). Identity foreclosure in sport. Routledge handbook of applied sport psychology , 282-291.
