Identity Development In Adolescence Essay

Throughout my adolescence, my identity has been developed in many ways by many different factors. Early on in adolescence, I was very impressionable and got aspects of my identity from others however when I entered crisis my identity developed. James Marcia classifies identity development in adolescence into four stages and I believe I passed through all of them to get to where I am today (Marcia pp401). Early on in adolescence, I had no sense of direction; however, I found my identity through others in what Marcia terms as the diffusion phase. Later on in adolescence, I got my goals and identity from my parents and this was my foreclosure phase. I then went through some personal crises that shaped who I am today. During these crises, I was in the moratorium phase, and after I went through them I ended up where I am today in my identity achievement. Some factors that contributed to my identity development in adolescence were peer relationships, parenting, academic achievement, and traumatic events. Early on in my adolescence, my peer relationships …show more content…
My days spent with my friends will always have a long lasting impact on my identity, including the clothes that I wear and the music I listen to. My parents’ warmth that they have shown me has helped me to stay close with them and develop ideals close to their own such as the importance of family. Academic achievement has taken me from being told I could not go to college to taking college courses from my high school. The academic achievement that I accomplished has helped shape who I am and my goal of becoming a teacher and helping students who do not think school is for them. The traumatic events that I have endured have helped me see how important my goals in education are. The events I have been through have put me into the phase of achievement. I know that I want to become a teacher and everything that I have been through has helped develop my