Adolescent identity development in context

Adolescents' challenging and grief-filled transitions when living with a parent with ALS: A qualitative interpretive study

OBJECTIVE

The study aimed to explore the meaning for adolescents of living with a parent with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

METHODS

The design is qualitative. Interviews were conducted between December 2020 and April 2022 with 11 adolescents (8-25 y), living in households with a parent with ALS in Sweden. The analysis was phenomenologically hermeneutical.

RESULTS

The adolescents were in a difficult and exposed situation, especially if the parent had a severe disability and assistant care providers were in the home. Witnessing the gradual loss of the parent in an indefinite battle against time, while still needing them, elicited grief-filled and hard-to-manage emotions. Everyday life was turned upside down, resulting in greater responsibility for the adolescents, not only in helping with household chores and assisting the ill parent, but also in emotionally protecting both parents. It forced the adolescents to mature faster and put their own life on hold, triggering experiences of being limited. This, together with changing family roles yet being more attached to home, reinforced the imbalance in the adolescents' lives. The interpreted whole of the adolescents' narratives revealed that living with a parent with ALS meant a challenging and grieving transition during an already transition-filled adolescence, which left the adolescents struggling to keep a foothold on a life torn apart.

CONCLUSION

The unbalanced life situation may hinder the adolescents' identity formation and emancipation, which are developmentally important for managing a healthy and independent adulthood. The results emphasize the importance of early targeted support to reach this vulnerable group in order to secure their health.

Recent stressful life events and identity development in emerging adults: An examination of within-person effects

OBJECTIVE

To examine longitudinal associations among stressful life events and identity processess in emerging adults while accounting for within-person and between-person effects.

BACKGROUND

Theoretical perspectives suggest that stressful life events may impact one's identity (i.e., coherent sense of self), but few studies have considered how changes in stressful life events are associated with changes within an individual's identity development over time (within-person effects).

METHODS

 Recent stressful life events (i.e., academic problems, friendship problems, romantic problems, and time pressure) and the processes through which identity develops (e.g., exploring in breadth and depth) were examined longitudinally (T1-T3) in a sample of emerging adults (N = 1125, Mage = 17.96 years).

RESULTS

Random-intercept cross-lagged modeling demonstrated that at the between-person level, emerging adults with greater academic and friendship problems, as well as more time pressures (relative to their counterparts), tended to engage in greater ruminative exploration. Further, those with more academic problems tended to demonstrate weaker commitment-making and exploration in breadth and depth (relative to their counterparts). Within-person increases in romantic problems predicted lower commitment-making and higher ruminative exploration over time.

CONCLUSION

Findings suggest that romantic problems may predict within-person changes in identity processes, whereas academic problems, friendship problems, and time pressure may be more concurrently related to identity development.

Characterizing Life Stress Exposure Among Sexual Minority Adolescents: Temporality, Content, And Mediating Role in Mental Health Disparities

Though sexual minority adolescents face a wide array of deleterious stressors, few studies have examined the role of specific types of stress exposure (i.e., chronic vs. episodic, interpersonal vs. non-interpersonal) on mental health disparities. This study utilizes a contextual threat-based assessment to (a) compare levels of stress exposure types between sexual minority and non-sexual minority adolescents, and (b) examine stress type as a mediator between sexual orientation and two outcomes: depressive symptoms and emotion dysregulation. Data comes from a longitudinal sample (14-17 years-old, N = 241; 17.6% sexual minority; 54% assigned female at birth; 73.9% White), with two time-points (T1 and T2) utilized. Sexual minority adolescents reported higher chronic interpersonal stress, but no differences in non-interpersonal chronic or episodic stress, relative to non-sexual minority adolescents. Chronic interpersonal stress exposure mediated the link between membership in an oppressed group (i.e., sexual minority teens) and the primary outcomes (emotion dysregulation and depressive symptoms) at both T1 and T2. Findings demonstrate the utility of contextual threat-based assessments within sexual minority research.

Social Categorisation and Social Identification: The Mediating Role of Social Isolation and Loneliness in Adolescents Living with HIV

BACKGROUND

Social isolation and loneliness are associated with living with a chronic condition particularly where stigma is a factor. Our study aimed to examine the lived experience of adolescents living with HIV in relation to isolation because of their diagnosis and consequences of disclosure. Giddens' structuration theory was used as an analytic framework to identify the potential mechanisms underlying adolescents living with HIV's experiences.

METHOD

Longitudinal in-depth interviews were conducted with 20 adolescents living with HIV aged 15-24 years with each participant taking part in three interviews (total 60) between September 2020 and October 2021. Thematic analysis was performed using Braun and Clarke's steps for coding and analysing qualitative data and informed by the structuration theory framework.

RESULTS

The findings indicated that adolescents living with HIV have agency and make conscious choices about sharing their status. However, these choices are influenced by their experiences in their community. The discrimination and negative judgements they often experience prevent them from disclosing their status. Stigma, discrimination, and psychological distress contribute to the isolation that adolescents and young adults living with HIV experience. The limited disclosure itself can lead to them becoming isolated and lonely.

CONCLUSION

The negative experiences which adolescents living with HIV face can have an impact not only on their psychological wellbeing but also on their decision to disclose and seek support. These experiences may lead to social isolation and loneliness, an unintended consequence of their action in protecting themselves from the conditions created by the structures/environment in which they live.

Measurement invariance of the LGBT People of Color Microaggressions Scale among LGBTQ+ youth

The LGBT People of Color Microaggressions Scale (LGBT-PCMS) is a widely used measure of intersectional microaggression experiences among sexual and gender minority people of color. Although it is widely used-and increasingly used in adolescent and young adult samples-it is unknown whether the LGBT-PCMS demonstrates similar measurement properties across subgroups of sexual and gender minority youth of color (SGMYOC). Among 4142 SGMYOC (ages 13-17) we found evidence for either partial or full scalar invariance (item loadings and intercepts were generally equal) across sexual orientation, race-ethnicity, and gender identity groups for all three subscales. Specific patterns of invariance and noninvariance across groups, as well as implications for the use of the LGBT-PCMS and its subscales among SGMYOC are discussed.

Parenting and Emotional and Behavioral Difficulties in a General Population Sample of Adolescents: The Mediating Role of Emotional Dysregulation

Research has shown that both parenting and emotional dysregulation are associated with mental health outcomes in youth. This cross-sectional research was developed to replicate these noted findings and explore the mediating role of emotional dysregulation to explain the relationship between parenting and emotional and behavioral difficulties (internalizing and externalizing problems) in adolescents. A total of 104 adolescents (61.5% females; M = 15.62 yrs., SD = 1.38) participated in the study. Participants completed the Parental Bonding Instrument (measuring care, promotion of autonomy, and overprotection) referring to both the mother and father, the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale, and the Youth Self-Report. The results showed that difficulties in emotion regulation fully mediated the relationship between overprotection (in both parents) and low maternal care with internalizing problems, on the one hand, and the relationship between maternal overprotection and low care (in both parents) with externalizing problems, on the other hand. Furthermore, emotional dysregulation partially mediated the effect of paternal care on internalizing problems. These findings help to clarify one of the mechanisms through which parenting can affect mental health in youth. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed.

Identity Matters for Well-Being: The Longitudinal Associations Between Identity Processes and Well-Being in Adolescents with Different Cultural Backgrounds

Adolescents' identity processes and their levels of well-being are likely to be intertwined. On the one hand, how adolescents cope with the core developmental task of forming their identity has important implications for their well-being. On the other hand, experiencing a condition of well-being can help adolescents consolidate their identity. This longitudinal study adopted a multidimensional and culturally sensitive perspective to unravel how identity processes (i.e., commitment, in-depth exploration, and reconsideration of commitment) in two domains (i.e., educational and interpersonal identity) were developmentally related to multiple indicators of positive well-being (i.e., physical health, subjective, psychological, and social well-being) in adolescents with different cultural backgrounds. Participants were 1396 adolescents (Mage = 15.73, SDage = 1.23, 49.93% females; 20.89% with a migrant background) who completed questionnaires at four-time points across one year. Results of cross-lagged models confirmed the positive reciprocal associations between identity commitment and well-being in all its facets. The nuanced picture of associations of in-depth exploration and reconsideration of commitment with multiple dimensions of well-being highlighted the importance of adopting a multi-dimensional perspective on well-being and a domain-specific approach to identity. Multigroup analyses indicated that the associations between identity commitment in the educational domain and well-being are relevant, especially for adolescents with a migrant background. Overall, this study highlights the centrality of identity processes for adolescents' adaptation and points to a dynamic loop of reciprocal influences at the core of youth positive development.

Navigating Across Heritage and Destination Cultures: How Personal Identity and Social Identification Processes Relate to Domain-Specific Acculturation Orientations in Adolescence

Personal identity and social identification processes can be challenging for adolescents belonging to an ethnic minority, who have to cope with the acculturation task of navigating several (and often conflictual) alternatives put forth by their cultural heritage community and destination society. Because identity and acculturation tasks are embedded in core domains of adolescents' life, this three-wave longitudinal study with ethnic minority adolescents (N = 244, 43.4% male; Mage = 14.9) examined how personal identity processes and social identifications are related to acculturation orientations in the education and friendship domains. Results of traditional cross-lagged models showed that, in the educational domain, adolescents who scored higher on cultural heritage maintenance compared to their peers, scored higher on commitment later on. In the friendship domain, stronger associations were found, such that adolescents who scored higher on cultural heritage maintenance compared to their peers, reported higher commitment and in-depth exploration later on, while those who scored higher on identification with friends reported over time also higher cultural heritage maintenance and destination culture adoption. Random-intercept crossed-lagged models indicated that, when adolescents reported above their own average on reconsideration of educational commitment, they reported increased cultural heritage maintenance later on. Furthermore, consistent associations (at baseline and over time) emerged. Overall, this study points to virtuous alliances between the fulfillment of tasks related to adolescents' identity development and acculturation.

Adolescents' motivation to use social network sites from a psychological needs perspective

INTRODUCTION

Adolescents' social network sites (SNS) use is prominent during the developmental period. Various adolescents' motivations for using  SNS have been reported. However, there is a lack of psychological perspectives in understanding the reasons for adolescents to use SNS. This study explored adolescents' motivation to use SNS, and a comprehensive psychological framework was used to dismantle adolescents' reasons and purposes for using SNS. Adolescents' ways of using SNS were explored to contextualize teens' SNS use.

METHODS

Semistructured interviews with 18 Malaysian adolescents (Mage  = 15; 50% female; 10 Malay, 5 Chinese, 1 Indian, 1 Other Bumiputera) were conducted. The qualitative data were collected in 2021 in Malaysia through online video calls. Reflexive thematic analysis was the analytic approach.

RESULTS

Six motivations for using SNS were identified: social interaction, content subscription and exploration, emotional support, participation, distraction, and self-expression. Each of the motivations was explicitly linked with different psychological needs. Adolescents were found to use SNS differently in three aspects: deliberate use (i.e., on purpose of use and time spent on SNS), content-selective, and audience-selective.

CONCLUSION

This study demonstrates that psychological needs are the psychological reasons for adolescents' motivations for using SNS. Adolescence developmental tasks like strong peer identification and identity explorations are parts of the basic and compound psychological needs. Teens are pursuing a sense of self-coherence by using SNS. Adolescents demonstrated to use SNS differently at being deliberate and selective, which is speculated to be a result of the conflict between reflexive and reflective thought processes during SNS use.

Voices of Identity: Exploring Identity Development and Transformation among Urban American Indian/Alaska Native Emerging Adults

Emerging adulthood shapes personal, professional, and overall well-being through identity exploration. This study addresses a gap in the minority identity literature by investigating how urban AI/AN emerging adults think about their identity and discussing challenges and protective factors associated with exploring their identity holistically. This mixed-methods study created a sampling framework based on discrimination experiences, cultural identity, social network support, mental health, and problematic substance use. We recruited 20 urban AI/AN emerging adults for interviews. We sought to gain deeper insights into their experiences and discussions surrounding identity formation and exploration. We provide descriptives for demographic characteristics and conducted a thematic analysis of the qualitative data from the interviews. Four themes emerged: a) being an urban AI/AN emerging adult means recognizing that one's identity is multifaceted; b) a multifaceted identity comes with tension of living in multiple worlds; c) the trajectory of one's identity grows over time to a deeper desire to connect with Native American culture; and d) understanding one's Native American background affects one's professional trajectory. Findings underscore the importance of developing programs to support well-being and identity development through cultural connection for urban AI/AN emerging adults.

Unsettled adoptive identity: Understanding relationship challenges in adopted adolescents' identity narratives

Adopted adolescents create identity narratives conceptualizing their connections to their families of adoption and birth. Previous work with a sample of adoptive adolescents identified a sub-group who reported negative experiences regarding adoption as part of their navigating of adoptive identity processes (the "Unsettled" group). The current study examined interviews with adolescents in the "Unsettled" group to elucidate these negative experiences, specifically through identifying the relationship challenges linked to adoption. Participants included 30 adopted adolescents (18 females, 12 males) from a longitudinal study of adoptive families. All the adolescents (M age = 15.2 years) were domestically adopted in infancy by heterosexual couples who were the same race as the adolescents (29 White, 1 Mexican American). Thematic analysis revealed six themes reflecting adolescents' relationship challenges as related to adoption, both in terms of interpersonal interactions and how relational experiences influenced adolescents' thoughts and feelings of past, present, and future selves: (a) Negative experiences in relationships with adoptive family members, (b) Negative experiences in relationships with birth family members, (c) Difficulties in the adoptive kinship network, (d) Negative thoughts and feelings toward the self as an adopted person, (e) Negative views toward adoption as a form of building a family, and (f) Negative connections between adoption and future relationships. Multiple subthemes were also identified that built upon topics within the adoption and family systems literature, such as communication among family members, navigation of birth family contact, and adopted adolescents' perceptions of loss. Also identified were four profiles across themes. Implications for mental health providers and adoption professionals are discussed.

Educational identity and maternal helicopter parenting: Moderation by the perceptions of environmental threat

This four-wave study examined longitudinal associations between maternal helicopter parenting and college students' educational identity processes over 1 year, as well as the moderating effects of mothers' perceived environmental threats (i.e., uncertainty and competition). Participants were 349 first-year university students (39.8% male, Mage  = 18.20) and their mothers (Mage  = 49.10) in Hong Kong. Latent class growth analysis identified two subgroups based on levels of mothers' threat perceptions (i.e., lower vs. higher). Multi-group random-intercept cross-lagged models found that, at the within-person level, students' reconsideration of educational commitments positively predicted helicopter parenting only for mothers with higher threat perceptions. These findings mainly support youth-driven effects on overbearing parenting behaviors. Mothers' threat perceptions might exacerbate these excessive responses to youth's academic turbulence.

Gender and sexual identity-based inequalities in adolescent wellbeing: findings from the #BeeWell Study

BACKGROUND

Gender and sexual minority adolescents experience greater symptoms of psychological distress than their peers, but little is known about broader aspects of their wellbeing. This study examines wellbeing inequalities relating to gender and sexual identity among adolescents from Greater Manchester in the United Kingdom.

METHOD

37,978 adolescents (aged 12-15, attending 165 secondary schools) completed surveys of life satisfaction, positive and negative affect (hedonic framework); autonomy, self-esteem, optimism, and positive relationships (eudaimonic framework); and, symptoms of distress and mental wellbeing (complete state framework). Structural correlated factors models were used to assess gender and sexual identity wellbeing inequalities.

RESULTS

The magnitude of wellbeing inequalities pertaining to gender and sexual identity were routinely substantially greater than those concerning other characteristics (e.g., socio-economic disadvantage). Gender identity wellbeing inequalities followed a consistent pattern, with the largest disparities evident between gender diverse adolescents and boys. Sexual identity wellbeing inequalities also followed a consistent pattern, with the largest disparities evident between sexual minority youth (both gay/lesbian and bi/pansexual) and their heterosexual peers. Finally, variation was evident across wellbeing domains. For example, observed gender identity (boys vs. girls) and sexual identity (heterosexual vs. sexual minority) disparities were substantially greater for symptoms of distress than for mental wellbeing in the complete state model.

CONCLUSIONS

LGBTQ + adolescents experience lower wellbeing than their peers, and this is evident across a range of wellbeing domains. Accordingly, there is an urgent need for the prioritisation of improved prevention and intervention efforts that can better meet the needs of gender diverse and sexual minority youth, and future research should be conducted to improve understanding of the mechanisms underpinning the wellbeing inequalities observed.

I was, I am, I will be: Identity and time perspective before and during COVID-19

The ways in which youth reach a stable identity, a core developmental task of emerging adulthood, are intertwined with their perceptions of the past, present, and future. Additionally, these dynamics are embedded in and are strongly influenced by the socio-historical context and concurrent events, such as COVID-19. This study examines how different groups of emerging adults (university students and workers) engage in identity processes in educational/vocational and interpersonal domains and frame their perspective of time before (N = 299, Mage  = 21.90; 51.4% females) and during the pandemic (N = 497; Mage  = 23.11; 68.2% females). Significant differences in identity processes and time perspective emerged between the two cohorts. Moreover, significant associations between identity and time perspective were found to be similar across different identity domains and cohorts.

Impact of Coaching on the Development of Personal and Social Competences among Secondary School Students

In this study, the impact of school coaching in Spain on the dimensions that comprise the effective personality construct and the development of those dimensions among secondary school students is analyzed. Differences relating to the variables of gender, course year/age, and the state/private sector of each educational center are specified. A longitudinal study employing a quasi-experimental methodology was conducted with a sample of 310 students in attendance at 6 educational centers within the Community of Madrid, Spain; the study cohort comprised 156 (50.3%) male students and 154 (49.7%) female students. The effective personality questionnaire in secondary education was used for the pre- and post-intervention evaluations, as well as to conduct an open survey once the program had ended. The students who attended the six-session intervention expressed high degrees of satisfaction. Despite the brevity of each session (45-60 min), a slight non-significant improvement was observed in the experimental group relative to the control group in the dimensions that were studied (p > 0.05). Regarding gender, the program worked better with male rather than with female students. It was also more effective within state-aided than in state schools.

Coping styles mediate the relation between mindset and academic resilience in adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic: a randomized controlled trial

The COVID-19 pandemic negatively impacted adolescent mental health on a global scale. However, many students were resilient during this crisis, despite exposure to COVID-related stressors. We aimed to study the protective effects of growth mindset on school-related resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the mediating effects of coping styles. The two-year follow-up of an ongoing Randomized Controlled Trial, involving a growth mindset and control intervention, took place during the pandemic. We measured growth mindset, school burnout symptoms, COVID-19-specific stressor exposure, coping styles, and calculated a resilience score (corrected for pre-pandemic school burnout symptoms). Mediation analyses were performed in the total sample (N = 261), and exploratory in the intervention subsamples, to test whether the associations between mindset and resilience were mediated by coping styles. Growth-mindset students were more resilient during the pandemic and used less maladaptive and more adaptive (acceptance) coping styles. Coping mediated the relation between mindset and resilience in the total sample (both coping styles), and growth mindset intervention subsample (maladaptive coping). We found unique evidence for the beneficial effects of growth mindset on school-related resilience during the pandemic, and the mediating effect of coping styles as explanatory mechanism. This work contributes to a growing literature that shows positive effects of growth mindset on mental health.

Mirror, mirror on the wall, tell me that I have succeeded at it all: Self-esteem and the defensive mechanisms against failure

Students face frequent formal and informal tests, both in the academic context and social life. On each of these occasions, they risk falling short of their own or others’ expectations. Facing failure is a psychological challenge, and people can react with defensive strategies, which may have negative consequences. Here we investigated the role of self-esteem as a possible buffer against these defensive strategies. Previous research has demonstrated that, in the face of failure, individuals with discrepant (fragile: high explicit and low implicit, or damaged: high implicit and low explicit) self-esteem are more likely to engage in defensive mechanisms than individuals with consistent implicit and explicit self-esteem. Two studies investigate the relationship between implicit and explicit self-esteem and two defensive strategies against the threat of failure: subjective overachievement and retroactive excuses. In Study 1 (N = 176 high school students), we find an association between fragile self-esteem and subjective overachievement. In Study 2 (N = 101 university students), damaged self-esteem is related to the increased use of retroactive excuses as a form of self-serving bias. These results add to the growing body of evidence documenting the maladaptive nature of fragile and damaged self-esteem.

Fostering Engagement, Reflexivity, and 21st-Century Skills in Middle School: A Pilot Collaborative Action Research on Identity Formation with Adolescent Co-Researchers

Identity construction during adolescence constitutes a primary psychosocial developmental task. A growing body of research has addressed the importance of school education in fostering adolescents’ identity formation and the skills they need to thrive. Although several studies aimed at defining the factors contributing to a coherent, stable, and integrated identity formation, none sought to investigate this question from the adolescents’ perspective. This contribution aimed to explore new ways of fostering 21st-century skills among adolescents through action research. Five adolescents aged 13 to 15 participated in the research process, creating a survey to answer a research problem mainly focused on identity construction in adolescence. A reflexive analysis of the co-research process highlighted the interest in involving adolescents as co-researchers to foster their social and emotional skills. The deployment of the resulting survey in a sample of 1210 adolescents from the general population highlighted the importance of gender diversity for constructing various dimensions of identity.