Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.
J Youth Adolesc. 2019 May;48(5):891-907. doi: 10.1007/s10964-018-0931-5. Epub 2018 Sep 24.
Developing a stable and coherent identity structure (i.e., a synthesized sense of self that can support self-directed decision making) represents a lifelong task. A person's identity structure is continually revised through ongoing processes of identity exploration and commitment. However, longitudinal studies linking identity structure to identity processes are largely lacking. The present three-wave longitudinal study among 530 Flemish high school students [50.6% female; M = 15; SD = 1.85; age range = 11-19 years] examined the directionality of both between- and within-person associations linking identity synthesis and confusion to identity exploration and commitment processes. Between-person cross-lagged models indicated that adolescents who scored high on identity synthesis relative to their peers also scored high on proactive exploration and commitment processes, and low on ruminative exploration one year later, again relative to their peers. Adolescents who scored high on identity confusion relative to their peers also scored high on ruminative exploration one year later, again relative to their peers. With respect to effects of identity processes on identity structure, adolescents who scored high on identification with commitment relative to their peers also scored low on identity confusion one year later. Within-person cross-lagged models indicated that, when adolescents scored high on identity synthesis relative to their own average score, they reported increased proactive exploration processes one year later. In general, reaching a degree of identity synthesis appears to represent a prerequisite for proactive identity exploration at both the between- and within-person levels.
发展稳定且连贯的身份结构（即能够支持自我导向决策的综合自我意识）是一项终身任务。一个人的身份结构通过持续的身份探索和承诺过程不断修订。然而，将身份结构与身份过程联系起来的纵向研究在很大程度上仍然缺乏。本研究对 530 名佛兰芒高中生（50.6%为女性；M=15；SD=1.85；年龄范围为 11-19 岁）进行了为期三年的纵向研究，探讨了身份综合和困惑与身份探索和承诺过程之间的个体间和个体内关联的方向性。个体间交叉滞后模型表明，与同龄人相比，身份综合得分较高的青少年在随后一年也表现出积极探索和承诺过程得分较高，而沉思探索得分较低。与同龄人相比，身份困惑得分较高的青少年在随后一年也表现出沉思探索得分较高。关于身份过程对身份结构的影响，与同龄人相比，对承诺的认同得分较高的青少年在随后一年的身份困惑得分也较低。个体内交叉滞后模型表明，当青少年与自己的平均得分相比，身份综合得分较高时，他们在随后一年报告了更多的积极探索过程。总的来说，在个体间和个体内水平上，达到一定程度的身份综合似乎是积极的身份探索的先决条件。
