Relation between ego identity statuses and decision-making styles.

Abstract

We examined the proposition that individual variations in career decision making are related conceptually to the identity formation process of late adolescence. To investigate this proposition 2 studies were conducted to identify the relations between ego identity statuses and decisionmaking styles. The findings suggested that persons who have achieved a stable identity tend to use rational and systematic decision-making strategies. Those whose identity status is foreclosed tend to rely on dependent strategies and do not endorse systematic and internal strategies. Persons in the diffusion status tend to rely on intuitive and dependent styles or exhibit an absence of systematic and internal styles. The moratorium status was not consistently associated with variations in decision-making styles. We relate the results to previous theory and to implications for practice and research.

The Shapes of Commitment Development in Emerging Adulthood

“…The low scores on passive and avoidant coping can be expected in an MA trajectory, but we would not expect low scores on informationoriented identity style and autonomy. However, these scores are in line with our third explanation which was based on Blustein and Phillips' (1990) notion of an intuitive and dependent decision making style. If people seek out rapid and other-dependent solutions to decisional tasks they probably show little information orientation and autonomy.…”

“…Another explanation for a development of commitments without exploration is offered in a study of Blustein and Phillips (1990). They showed that in career decision making both a diffused and moratorium status are strongly related to an intuitive and dependent decision making style.…”

Exploration of Factors Related to Development of Vocational Identity in Collegiate Student Athletes

“…Bluestein and Phillips (1990) found that individuals in foreclosure (i.e., in the foreclosure status) have a tendency to rely on a dependent decision-making style, a style suggested by Johnson (1978) as reflective of individuals who rely on external sources to make decisions than internal ones. Additionally, Blustein and Phillips (1990) suggested that a dependent decisionmaking style can lead to maladaptive decision-making, rely on an external locus of responsibility, and have a "broader, and perhaps more pervasive, sort of dependency" (p. 167).…”

Cultural Differences in Career Decision-Making Styles and Self-Efficacy

“…For instance, a rational decision-making style has been found to be associated with career maturity (Blustein, 1987;Dilley, 1965), planning and information gathering (Jepsen, 1974), ego identity (Blustein & Phillips, 1990), career decisiveness (Lunneborg, 1978;Mau, 1995), problem solving efficacy (Heppner, 1978;Phillips, Pazienza, & Ferrin, 1984a), and occupational certainty (Mau & Jepsen, 1992). In contrast, a nonrational decision-making style tends to be inversely related to progress in resolving various career tasks (Blustein & Phillips, 1990;Mau & Jepsen, 1992;Osipow & Reed, 1985). Although a rational decisionmaking style is generally postulated as an ideal style, some (Chartrand, Rose, Elliott, Marmarosh, & Caldwell, 1993;Mau, 1995;Phillips, Pazienza, & Walsh, 1984b;Phillips & Strohmer, 1982;Rubinton, 1980) have indicated that a rational style is either negligibly or not necessarily associated with progress in careerrelated tasks.…”