adolescent identity formation

Syllable breakdown

Dictionary meaning

the psychosocial process described by Erik Erikson as the central developmental challenge of adolescence, in which young people actively explore and commit to personal values, beliefs, vocational directions, and social roles; Erikson characterised the adolescent years as a period of identity versus role confusion, in which the failure to construct a coherent identity can result in lasting uncertainty; James Marcia extended Erikson's framework by identifying four identity statuses — diffusion, foreclosure, moratorium, and achievement — that describe the degree to which individuals have explored and committed to identity domains; the process is shaped by family, peers, culture, and broader social structures