Predicting Change in Relational Identity Commitments: Exploration and Emotions

Abstract

Exploration has long been assumed to be the primary mechanism behind changes in identity commitments. Conceptual and operational definitions of exploration emphasize the active role of the individual. In addition to this mechanism, we propose a model based on emotions to explain changes in relational identity commitments. To investigate the viability of this model, four individuals (aged 20-22 years) reported daily identity-relevant experiences for 5 months. The Groningen Identity Development Scale (Bosma, 1985) and a variant thereof were administered at the beginning and end of this period, respectively. The results challenge the primacy of exploration as a mechanism behind commitment changes, and reveal an important role for emotions in such changes.Forming an identity is the major developmental task during the transition to adulthood (Erikson, 1950). In the best-known operationalization of identity, the identity status paradigm (Marcia, 1966), suggested looking at the commitments individuals make in respect to occupation and ideology. Later, Rogow, Marcia, and Slugoski (1983) suggested that any personally relevant issue can be used from the perspective of the identity status paradigm. Following this suggestion, the identity IDENTITY: AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF THEORY AND RESEARCH, 5(1), 35-56

Micro-level mechanisms of identity development: The role of emotional experiences in commitment development.

“…This supports the hypothesis that experiences are an important part of the mechanisms of micro-level identity development, as has been proposed by many researchers (e.g., Bosma & Kunnen, 2001a;Grotevant, 1987;Kerpelman et al, 1997;Van der Gaag et al, 2016;Vleioras & Bosma, 2005). Indeed, our results support the notion that emotional experiences are more proximal in the mechanisms of identity development, while exploration is more distal.…”

“…However, as negative experiences also usually strengthen commitment, what seems to matter most for commitment building is whether the emotional experience is intense or not, regardless of the valence (i.e., positive or negative). Vleioras & Bosma (2005) argued that emotions particularly emerge among experiences with personal relevance. Perhaps universities could investigate what is personally relevant to their students, and try to facilitate such experiences.…”

The Threatened Identity: An Empirical Study

“…although there have been attempts at specifying types of events that cause identity change (e.g. Kroger & haslett, 1991), other researchers (Berzonsky, 2003;Vleioras & Bosma, 2005) indicate the role of personal interpretation of life experiences. They claim that the importance of the same type of events may be different for different people.…”

The link between identity style and intimacy balance: Does emotional intelligence provide the key?

“…Informational individuals follow the traditional process of exploration, whereas normative individuals' commitments are emotionally grounded (Berzonsky, 2003). Vleioras and Bosma (2005b) explored a model for changes in identity commitment based on emotions and found that emotions resulting from a mismatch between current commitments and one's environment triggered exploration. Thus, an 'identity crisis' as conceptualized by Erikson may be triggered not only by cognitive dissonance, but also by emotional distress (Marcia, 2002).…”

“…The proposed that emotion plays a pivotal role in the formation and maintenance of identity (e.g., Haviland, Davidson, Ruetsch, Gebelt & Lancelot, 1994;Strayer, 2002;Vleioras & Bosma, 2005b), as well as in identity commitments (e.g., Berzonsky, 2003), such that identity commitment itself is an emotion-laden construct (Strayer, 2002). However, the emotional aspects of identity development have been largely ignored in identity theory and research, although emotions and emotional processing have been shown to be important in sociocognitive attributions and appraisals .…”