Erikson-Marcia psychosocial development and ego identity status framework¶

Theory · All theories
Evidence · no claims cited

Description¶

The paper organizes its study around Erikson's lifespan psychosocial development theory, in which identity involves sameness and continuity and can be destabilized by later life changes such as immigration, and Marcia's operationalization of the fifth stage into four ego identity statuses: "identity diffusion, moratorium, foreclosure, and achievement". Each stage is a dialectic between bipolar issues resolved within a sociocultural context. The study applies this framework to adult immigrants, focusing on stages 5-7 (identity, intimacy, generativity) measured by the MPD.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Assessment requires an instrument operationalizing the stage constructs, such as the MPD with positive, negative, and resolution scales per stage

Constraints¶

• The authors note criticism that Erikson's ego identity construct and mechanisms of development have been abstract and vague

Target Learners¶

• adult immigrants

Target Learning Objectives¶

• psychosocial identity development and redefinition after major life transitions

Claims¶

Related Theories¶

Examples¶

• Replicate cross-cultural psychosocial studies with additional samples and in-country comparison groups
• Modified identity status interview

Key Sources¶

• Kim, Saekyung; Gaa, John; Swank, Paul; Liberman, Dov. (1998). Identity Transformation of Korean Immigrants. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED420007