Identity

1.      In chapter 16, the topic of identity was discussed. Identifying one’s self is never easy. I do not think that I had even reached the point where I have truly found myself. However, I think that I can safely say that I am close to finding my true “identity” in the world. In the book, it describes four specific ways young people cope with the identity stage. Role confusion is the situation in which an adolescent does not know or care what his or her identity is. I think that we all go through this stage during our early adolescence. During this time, it’s not usual that adolescents go out of their way to think about chores or thinking about college or careers. Another stage is foreclosure. Identity foreclosure is when an adolescent adopts their parent’s or society’s roles and values without question. Again, this is another stage I believe almost every adult has gone through. I think that it is very common to go through this stage when growing up with parents who were strict. I had gone through this stage as a child. I accepted my parent’s morals and values as my own customs because to me, their word was law. One would not question the law, so it became true. The third stage is moratorium. This stage is the adolescent’s choice of a socially acceptable way to postpone achieving their identity. An example of this would be going to college. This is another stage I felt like many people go through. However, I found it interesting how it is a stage to postpone identity achievement rather than a stage that would help achieve identity.

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