Introducing Ecofeminist Theologies

Books reviewed:
Heather Eaton, Introducing Ecofeminist Theologies. Reviewed by Lucy Larkin Adelaide, Australia     

Identity Closure: A Fifth Identity Status

This study examined identity status and self-actualization of young adults (N = 41), who were administered a revised identity interview (based on Marcia's interview) and a measure of self-actualization (the Personal Orientation Inventory). A fifth status, identity closure, was added to account for status regression and re-foreclosure, found in previous studies. This addition prompted a revision of the operational definition of identity achievement to include three criteria: exploration, tentative commitment, and openness to alternatives. Open achieved individuals scored higher than closed individuals on the measure of self-actualization, suggesting some validity for the revised operational definition of identity achievement and providing support for Eriksonian theory. Theoretical implications and the development of a revised paradigm are discussed.     

Introducing the sick face

Research on disgust in neuroscience, medicine, and psychology often relies on a disgust facial expression from a standardized set. Two studies (N = 60 and N = 160) compared this standard disgust face to a new facial expression called the “sick face” posed by three different actors asked to look as if they were sick and about to vomit. Relative to the standard disgust face, the sick face was significantly more likely to be endorsed as disgust, less likely to be endorsed as another emotion, and rated as conveying disgust more intensely. Disgust may not have a facial signal, but various faces may serve as cues to disgust.     

Personal Identity and National Identity: An Analogy

Simone Weil writes in one of her notebooks: “When one arrives at the absolute one can only express oneself by identities … – For identity alone expresses the unconditioned” (Cahiers, in Œuvres complètes, t. VI, vol. 4 (Paris: Gallimard, 2006), 113). Thus, it is that “the good is the good”, one and the same, unconditionally. Certainly, an individual is unique, a nation is equally so. Nevertheless, personal identity – or “character” – and the identity of a nation are not absolutes. When we wish to treat them as absolutes, we ignore the fact that the “person,” as well as the “nation”, only exists within relationships that they are subject to exterior circumstances and that their identity is situated in time. Is one correct to suppose that the character of an individual or the identity of the nation are “invariables that one continues to find throughout various manifestations”, (“Notes sur le caractère”, Écrits de Marseille, in Œuvres complètes, Op. cit., t. IV, vol. 1 (2008), 87) observed or probable? We hypothesize here that one can apply to national identity what Simone Weil wrote about the notion of character, in notes composed in Marseille and in her commentary on the Our Father (“À propos du Pater”, ibid., 337-345).     

Introducing the super consumer

The purpose of this study is to propose a new perspective on classifying or segmenting consumers by describing a minority of them who are uniquely motivated by high levels of status seeking, brand identification, and materialism. We term this segment of individuals “super consumers.” The data came from an online survey of 351 adult US consumers. A cluster analysis using these three variables as criteria produced a two‐cluster solution. Comparing mean scores between these two groups of consumers on measures of market mavenism, shopping frequency, amount of spending, age, and gender showed that the super consumers were significantly more likely to be market mavens, to shop more frequently, and to spend more than the other consumers were. The super consumers were younger in age as well, but there were no gender differences between the two groups. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Identity, the Identity Statuses, and Identity Status Development: A Contemporary Statement

The Utrecht Study of Adolescent Development (Meeus et al., this issue) provides new data pertinent to issues of identity formation addressed in earlier reviews of the literature, specifically, (a) the direction and timing of identity status development, (b) the relative stability of the identity statuses, and (c) gender differences in identity formation. Despite numerous differences from earlier studies in the samples studied, the instruments used, and the methodologies employed, the findings of the Utrecht study are generally quite consistent with theoretical expectations and previous research outcomes. Because of the size and scope of the Utrecht study, data on possible age differences in the frequency of specific patterns of intraindividual identity status change could be analyzed. This aspect of identity formation had not been previously investigated. Equivocal results were obtained. Possible explanations for the partial failure to confirm this aspect of developmental theory are discussed.     

Women's Identity

No abstract available for this article.     

The Integration of Personal Identity,Religious Identity,and Moral Identity in Emerging Adulthood

The present study investigated the relative roles of identity structure (i.e., personal identity) and identity contents (i.e., religious identity and moral identity) in predicting emerging adults’ prosocial and antisocial behaviors. The sample included 9,495 college students. A variable-centered analysis (path analysis) used personal identity, religious identity, and moral identity as predictors of prosocial and antisocial behavior and tested interactions of personal identity with religious identity and moral identity. Moral identity was the strongest predictor of both behaviors, and religious identity and moral identity both interacted with personal identity in predicting antisocial behavior. A person-centered analysis (latent profile analysis) found three classes: integrated, moral identity–focused, and religious identity–focused, with integrated being most adaptive on both outcomes.     

Problematic Identity Processes: The Role of Identity Distress

This special issue of Identity: An International Journal of Theory and Research explores some of the anxiety, distress, and difficulties that may be encountered in the identity development process. Despite findings documenting the presence of identity distress in samples from a variety of settings and cultures, it has been slowly moving out of direct attention within the world of clinical psychology and psychiatry. This special issue expands on our understanding of identity distress in a number of ways. It adds to our knowledge of prevalence and severity, as well as its psychological correlates. It examines identity distress under the contexts of traumatic exposure and the refugee experience, and it offers some cross-national comparisons. Also offered is a developmental psychopathology perspective as a way to lay the groundwork for increased prevention and intervention work, and an example of such an intervention program for emerging adults. It is hoped that this special issue on identity distress will shine more light on this important, and possibly growing, yet understudied phenomenon, and will contribute toward expanding and enhancing efforts to foster positive youth development.     

Identity Coping in the First Years of University: Identity Diffusion,Adjustment and Identity Distress

In today’s advanced post-capitalist societies, consolidating identity with a view to acquiring adult roles is more complex than in the past. In Italy, the changes in the educational system are also associated with changes in the labor market characterized by lack of opportunity and instability. Therefore, young people on the threshold of university are discouraged from making long-term decisions and developing a coherent identity. The aim of the study was to explore what modalities Italian students adopt in order to cope with developmental tasks and how they proceed to negotiate and resolve identity-related concerns. The participants were 332 Italian students, balanced by gender, attending the first 2 years of university and aged 18–25. We used six self-report measures: Dimensions of Identity Development Scale; Identity Stage Resolution Index; Identity Distress Scale; Locus of Control Scale; Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale; and Depressive Symptom Subscale and Anxiety Symptom Subscale. Participation was voluntary, and anonymity was guaranteed. Findings indicate that identity processes, identity distress and sense of adulthood are related dimensions. We find five different modalities of identity coping (clusters) that identify different subjects. These retained clusters have also an effect on psychosocial correlates. Results advance the literature linking identity, sense of adulthood and coping with developmental tasks in emerging adulthood. Findings also support previous literature suggesting that coping with identity during first years of university is an important target of prevention efforts aimed at improving academic performance and identification of developmental path, particularly for individuals who exhibit identity diffusion and distress.