IGNOU Super-Notes: MPC2 LifeSpan Development_3 Development During Adolescence_3 Identity, Self-concept, Self-esteem, Peer group relationship

Psychology Super Notes© M S Ahluwalia Psychology Learners
Version 1.0
Identity, Self-Concept, Self-Esteem,
Peer Group Relationship

DEVELOPMENT DURING
ADOLESCENCE
ALL ABOUT PSYCHOLOGY

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Introduction
1.
4

Definition
5
1.1
Adolescence • A period of exploratory self-analysis and self-evaluation ideally culminating in
the establishment of a cohesive and integrated sense of self or identity.
• This process involves the exploration and testing of alternative ideas, beliefs,
and behaviors, making this period one of both dramatic change and
uncertainty.
• The search for identity is affected by the social world: peers, parents,
schools, and neighborhoods
Identity • Identity is a new way of thinking about oneself that emerges during
adolescence.
• Identity involves a sense of self-unity, accompanied by a feeling that the self
has continuity over time.
• A firmly established identity also provides a sense of uniqueness as a person.
• According to Erikson’s psychosocial model of development, identity must be
perceived by the individual, but also recognized and confirmed by others.

Identity in Adolescence
2.
6

Identity Formation
7
2.1
Identity
Formation
• The process of establishing an identity involves “Integrating into a coherent
whole one’s past experiences, ongoing personal changes, and society’s
demands and expectations for one’s future”
• Involves the successful negotiation of a variety of activities and relationships
during adolescence, and integrating these experiences and characteristics
into a coherent sense of self. The activities include:
• school achievement
• social relations with others
• development of career interests and choices
• Involves a great deal of exploration of different activities and roles. Gender,
ethnicity, and sexual orientation are important to adolescents’ developing
identity.
• Process of developing an identity begins with the infant’s discovery of self,
continues throughout childhood, and becomes the focus of adolescence.
• Erik Erikson, identified the goal of adolescence as achieving a coherent
identity and avoiding identity confusion.
• Identity is multidimensional and may include physical and sexual identity,
occupational goals, religious beliefs, and ethnic background. Adolescents
• explore these dimensions, and usually make commitments to aspects of their
identity as they move into early adulthood.

Identity Development
8
2.2
Infancy
• Identity development begins with
children’s awareness that they are
separate and unique individuals.
• First indications of this awareness
are evident in infancy when
children begin to recognise
themselves. They recognise the
reflected image as themselves.
• Also, the words “me,” “I,” and
“mine” emerge very early in
children’s language.
• These findings are consistent with
Erikson’s psychosocial stage of
autonomy versus shame and
doubt, when infants establish their
identity as independent persons.
Childhood
• During childhood, self-awareness
grows and changes.
• Preschoolers describe themselves
in terms of observable
characteristics and behaviours,
including physical attributes (“I
have brown eyes”), preferences (“I
like to ride my bike”), and
competencies (“I can sing ‘Itsy,
Bitsy Spider”’).
• Between ages six and twelve,
children begin to include less
concrete aspects of the self in
their descriptions. School aged
children talk about their feelings
(“I love my dog”) and how they fit
into their social world (“I’m the
best fielder on my team”).
• During Erikson’s stage of initiative
versus guilt children explore their
skills, abilities, and attitudes and
incorporate the information into
their view of self.
Adolescence
• As children edge closer and closer
to adulthood, they reach a point
where they want to be defined by
anything BUT their parents.
• They stop wanting to spend time
with family, and may even detest
being seen with their parents.
“Please drop me off a block from
school, Mom. I want to walk the
rest of the way.”
• The process of separation from
parents is a natural one.
• The physical, cognitive, and social
changes of adolescence allow the
teenager to develop the identity
that will serve as a basis for their
adult lives.
• During Erikson’s stage of identity
versus role confusion, adolescents’
description of self expands to
include personality traits (“I’m
outgoing”) and attitudes (“I don’t
like stuck-up people”).
• The emergence of abstract
reasoning abilities allows
adolescents to think about the
future and experiment with
different identities.

Identity
Developmen
t -
Adolescence
• Adolescents often reject their parents, and all that they stand for so that
they can make a clean break from childhood as they attempt to form an
identity of their own.
• With their sense of identity in flux, teens will often turn to peer groups for
that missing sense of belonging.
• This explains some of the cult-like tendencies amongst early adolescents
to worship the same heroes (movie stars, singers), wear the same
clothes and “rebel” against traditional authority. The interesting thing
about this so-called rebellion is that it’s often actually another form of
conformity — Gina wants a tattoo or a navel ring because everyone else
is getting them.
• They are hungry for role models and can be rather indiscriminate about
where they find them. Role models can make a critical difference in choices
adolescents make, choices that could affect the course of their lives.
• At this age, teens have a strong need to idealize others, especially those who
are older and more worldly, qualities they desperately want to possess. They
can be as easily awed by an older (that is, 18- or 19 year-old) guy who drives
a fancy car and pushes drugs, as by a sports hero who espouses clean living,
hard work and dedication.
Identity Development - Adolescence
9
2.2

Steps of Identity Development
10
2.2
1. The adolescent must break away from childhood beliefs to explore alternatives for
identity in a particular area.
2. Second, the adolescent makes a commitment as to their individual identity in that area.
Steps of Identity Development
Foreclosure • Some aspects of identity, especially among young adolescents, may be
foreclosed.
• The foreclosure status is when a commitment is made without exploring
alternatives.
Identity
achievement
• Identity achievement during adolescence serves as a basis for our adult
expectations and goals for us.
• As individuals enter early adulthood they use their current understanding of
whom they are to develop a lifespan construct which serves as the link
between the identity developed in adolescence and the adult self.
• The lifespan construct is an integration of an individual’s past, present, and
culture.

Identity Crisis
3.
11

Identity3.1
Erikson’s
definition
• Identity is “a subjective sense as well as an observable quality of personal
sameness and continuity, paired with some belief in the sameness and
continuity of some shared world image.
• As a quality of unself-conscious living, this can be gloriously obvious in a
young person who has found himself as he has found his communality.
• In him we see emerge a unique unification of what is irreversibly given—that
is, body type and temperament, giftedness and vulnerability, infantile models
and acquired ideals—with the open choices provided in available roles,
occupational possibilities, values offered, mentors met, friendships made,
and first sexual encounters.”
James
Marcia’s
definition
(1966, 1976,
1980)
• Identity could be viewed as a structure of beliefs, abilities and past
experiences regarding the self.
• “The better developed this structure is, the more individuals appear to be
aware of their own strengths and weaknesses. The less developed this
structure is, the more confused individuals seem to be about their own
distinctiveness from others and the more they have to rely on external
sources to evaluate themselves.”
• Identity is a dynamic, not static psychological structure.
• Formation of identity in adolescence sets the stage for continual changes in
the content of identity through the adult years.

Identity Crisis3.2
Identity
Crisis
• Erik Erikson coined the term identity crisis and believed that it was one of the
most important conflicts people face in development.
• An individual loses a sense of personal sameness and historical continuity.
• According to Erikson, an identity crisis is a time of intensive analysis and
exploration of different ways of looking at oneself.
• In his stages of psychosocial development, the emergence of an identity crisis
occurs during the teenage years in which people struggle between feelings
of identity versus role confusion.
• In his view, all of the earlier crystallisations of identity formed during
childhood come into question during adolescence with the overwhelming
combination of physical changes, increased sex drive, expanded mental
abilities, and increasing and conflicting social demands.
• To develop a sense of identity amidst the confusion, adolescents need to try
on a variety of roles and “must often test extremes before settling on a
considered course.”

Marcia’s Concept of Self
14
3.3
Identity • James Marcia refined and extended Erikson’s work on identity.
• In Marcia’s model, identity involves the adoption of:
1. a sexual orientation
2. a set of values and ideals
3. a vocational direction
• A well-developed identity gives on a sense of one’s strengths, weaknesses,
and individual uniqueness.
• A person with a less well-developed identity is not able to define his or her
personal strengths and weaknesses, and does not have a well articulated
sense of self.

Marcia’s Identity Statuses (1/2)
15
3.3
Background • Marcia (1966) operationalised the stage progression theory of identity
development proposed by Erikson by identifying four identity statuses:
diffusion, foreclosure, moratorium, and achievement.
• The core idea is that one’s sense of identity is determined largely by the
choices and commitments made regarding certain personal and social
traits. The following are considered:
• how much one has made certain choices
• how much he or she displays a commitment to those choices
• It is important to note that these are NOT stages. Identity statuses should not
be viewed as sub stages in a sequential or linear process.
• Through the use of a semi-structured interview, an individual could be
assigned an identity status on the basis of the evidence of crisis and
commitment in the domains of occupation, religion, and politics.
• To better understand the identity formation process, Marcia conducted
interviews with young people. He asked whether the participants had:
1. established a commitment to an occupation and ideology
2. experienced, or were presently experiencing, a decision making period
(adolescent identity crisis).
• Since its inception, Marcia’s interview has stimulated a wide range of
research in the area of identity formation.

Marcia’s Identity Statuses (2/2)
16
3.3
Diffusion
• The young person has not made a
commitment, and may or may not have
experienced an identity crisis.
• He or she appears to have given up any attempt
to make the commitments needed for
developing a clear sense of identity as Marcia
defines the term.
Foreclosure
• These people have made commitments to an
occupational future, but have not experienced
an identity crisis.
• They have conformed to the expectations of
others concerning their future. For example, an
individual may have allowed a parent to decide
what career they will pursue. These individuals
have not explored a range of options
(experienced an “identity crisis”).
Moratorium
• Individuals in moratorium are actively exploring
alternative commitments, but have not yet
made a decision.
• They are experiencing an identity crisis, but
appear to be moving forward toward identity
formation, making commitments.
Achievement
• The individual has experienced an identity crisis
and has made commitments necessary for
building a sense of identity as described above.
Commitment madeCommitment not made
Identity crisis may not have been experienced
Identity crisis experienced

Social Development
4.
17

Social Development
18
4.1
• Adolescence is a period when:
• Parental influences decrease and peer influences increase
• The individual searches for her own identity by interactions with her peers and many
outsiders including her teachers, neighborhood adults and others.
• Same sex hero worship is quite common.
• The individual is highly swayed and impressed by the idealism of hero’s and social
workers. At this age they enjoy doing work for others, and love to serve the
community. They take up examples of great pioneers and try to mould themselves like
them. They may also like to imitate film heroes and try to do things like them. All these
efforts contribute in a big way to the youngsters self identity.
• Adolescence begins with the physical changes that lead to sexual maturity. However,
studies in the recent years have shown that puberty is occurring at an earlier age so also the
physical development.
• Adolescents experience many moods and are more prone to mood swings (Myers, 2004).
• The cognitive development that takes place during adolescence gives the ability to reason:
• advancing reasoning skills allow adolescents to ponder several options and
possibilities to many social situations and experiences
• able to think more logically than when they were younger
• able to think hypothetically, even abstractly
Social development

Self-Concept and Self-Esteem
in Adolescence
5.
19

Self-Concept / Self-Identity
20
5.1
• Self-concept or self-identity refers to self-evaluation or self perception and represents the
sum total of a being’s knowledge and understanding of his or her self, such as beliefs
regarding personality traits, physical characteristics, abilities, values, goals, and roles.
• In adolescence, the self-concept becomes more abstract, complex, and hierarchically
organized into cognitive mental representations or self-schemas, which direct the
processing of self-relevant information.
• Components of the self-concept include physical, psychological, and social attributes, which
can be influenced by the individual’s attitudes, habits, beliefs and ideas. These components
and attributes can not be condensed to the general concepts of self-image and self-esteem.
• Self concept reflects how an adolescent evaluates himself or herself in domains (or areas) in
which he or she considers success important.
• An adolescent can have a positive self-concept in some domains and a negative self-concept
in others. Promoting high self-concept is important as it relates to academic and life success.
• For adolescents, having a high academic self-concept is associated with positive academic
performance and having a high physical self-concept is related to increased physical activity,
for example.
• An adolescent’s self-concept is dynamic, and causality is complex. That is, problems and
difficulties can lower self-concept; but low self-concept can also cause problems.
Background

Effect of Self-Concept...
21
5.1
…on
academic
achievement
• Self-concept is frequently positively correlated with academic performance,
but it appears to be a consequence rather than a cause of high achievement.
• This is a common assumption that an individuals high academic performance
results in their self concept. Whereas, the high academic performance is the
result of individual’s self concept.
…on
aggression
• aggressive students have low self-concept and use aggression as a means of
raising it.
…on
depression
and use of
illegal
substances
• Low self-concept is often considered a defining characteristic of depression,
but the evidence for this is weak.
• Although some evidence suggests that low self-concept may be a weak risk
factor for smoking in girls, the relationship between self-concept and the use
of alcohol and illegal drugs has little support.

Categories of self-concept
22
5.1
Self-concept
The way in which one perceives oneself
Personal self-
concept
• Facts or one’s own
opinions about
oneself
• Ex: “I have brown
eyes” or “I am
attractive”
Social self-concept
• One’s perceptions
about how one is
regarded by others
• Ex: “people think I
have a great sense
of humor”
Self-ideals
• What or how one
would like to be
• Ex: “I want to be a
lawyer” or “I wish I
were thinner”

Self-Concept and Self-Esteem
23
5.2
Self-concept
and
Self-esteem
• The terms self-concept and self-esteem represent different but related
constructs.
• Self-concept refers to a student’s perceptions of competence or adequacy in
academic and nonacademic (example, social, behavioral, and athletic)
domains and is best represented by a profile of self-perceptions across
domains.
• Self-esteem is a student’s overall evaluation of him- or herself, including
feelings of general happiness and satisfaction.
• Teachers, administrators, and parents commonly voice concerns about
students’ self-esteem. Low self esteem is viewed as the cause of all evil and
high self-esteem as the cause of all good.
Self-concept
and
Self-
consciousne
ss
• Self-concept is different from self consciousness, which is an awareness of
one’s self.

Negative Self-Concept – Signs and Cure
24
5.3
Signs of
Negative
Self-Concept
in
Adolescents
• Several signs may indicate that an adolescent has a negative self-concept. For
example:
• Doing poorly in school
• Having few friends
• Putting down one self and others
• Rejecting compliments
• Teasing others
• Showing excessive amounts of anger
• Being excessively jealous
• Appearing conceited
• Hesitating to try new things
Improving
self-concept
• Strategies that can be used to improve an adolescent’s self-concept include:
• praising accomplishments
• praising effort
• encouraging improvement in areas where he or she feels deficient, and ,
• refraining from using negative feedback.

25
• One of the major causes of low self esteem is parents who don’t mingle with people for fear of
their inability, chances that children have low esteem increase
Hereditary
• A child brought up in a poor environment without proper attention to make him excel in his fields
or deprived of doing good activities may have low self esteem
Living conditions
• Uneducated children develop lack of self esteem as they face problems in interacting with the
educated of their age
Lack of proper education
• Gender hormones start functioning in full swing during this period. Individuals face problems
coping with changes occurring in their body and behavior.
Physiological
• Ex: Cross-gender interactions. This makes them feel that there’s something to be afraid of and will
make them fear natural interaction.
Societal restrictions
• Unemployment, dating problems, insecurity, lack of financial backgrounds and many such factors
make the adolescents afraid of facing the world.
Fear about future
• Individuals may consider themselves to be a burden on society and consequently, keep away
from others and develop tendency to become agitated.
Diseases and other physical ailments
Low Self-Esteem – Causes5.3

Egocentrism in Adolescence
26
5.4
Adolescent
Egocentrism
• Adolescent egocentrism includes a belief system carried by adolescents that
makes them consider themselves as special and unique. (Elkind, 1967)
• This feeling is accompanied by the acquisition of many new psychological
abilities.
• Also characterized by an imaginary audience with an increased self
consciousness.
• They consider that their people around them especially peers observe
their activities and may comment on them.
• They are extremely conscious of what others think of them, their
appearance and everything related to them selves.
• This way they perceive themselves as seen by them contributing to the
development of self confidence.

Do you have any questions
or some feedback to share?
Send an email to
super.msahluwalia@yahoo.com
27

M S Ahluwalia (MSA) is a psychology learner, top B-School graduate, CAIIB & JAIIB (both with ‘First class
with Distinction’) and ex-Banker.
MSA is also an artist, blogger, designer and photographer. Know more, visit Estudiante De La Vida or
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