Who am I? What am I about? What is my place in my social group? What is important to me? What do I value? What do I want to do with my life? These are all questions related to what psychologists call identity. Many theorists have argued that we are driven to answer these questions, particularly during adolescence. In this article, I summarize an…

Examination of self-descriptions of 1,623 undergraduates (collectedd in 1958-64, 1970-74, and 1977-82) failed to support the prevailing assumption that masculinity and femininity develop independently. Rather, a positive relation was found between the presence of masculine and feminine traits within the same individual even when gender and state…

A total of 141 staff at residential summer camps and 31 university students attending summer school completed personality measures at the beginning of their summer experiences and 8 weeks later. No significant differences were found between groups, although camp staff shifted somewhat toward androgyny and internal locus of control. (SV)

An Analysis of responses to the Spence-Helmreich Attitudes Toward Women Scale by the Loevinger-Wessler Stages of ego development is presented in this article. The ANOVA results show a clear trend for attitude scores of women to increase toward equality and choice as their ego stage increases. (Author)

Assumed determinants of ego identity were investigated using high school students. The Marcia Ego Identity Status Scale was given as well as measures of sex role identification, personality development, psychological functioning, self concept, and parental socialization practices. Overall, the data supported Erikson's theory of ego identity…

A study examined the relations between fourth- through sixth-grade students' school adjustment and the extent to which their self concepts conformed to stereotypic gender roles. Among boys, more stereotypic self-concepts were associated with high levels of externalizing conduct disorders. Among girls, stereotypy was associated with high levels of…

Hypothesized that women who were more profeminist in their attitudes toward women's roles would score significantly higher on a measure of identity achievement than women whose attitudes were more traditional. Measures were administered to a random sample of 300 female college students. Results strongly supported the hypothesis. (Author)

Male and female college students were assessed on measures of ego identity development, intimacy development, and sex role orientation. For both males and females, identity was related to masculinity; also, there were more high-intimacy females than males. This low identity-high intimacy finding in women is discussed with respect to proposed…

Suicide proneness and self-destruction scales, together with measures of self-favorability and self-confidence, were administered to two samples (n=106 and n=213). It is suggested that women are self-destructive in passive ways, reflecting their lack of self-favorability and confidence and manifested by failure to react to everyday situations in…

Examined the relationship between sex role identity and two measures of adjustment--self-acceptance and peer acceptance--among adolescents. Sex differences were discovered regarding factors positively associated with self-acceptance. Findings suggest that a model of sex role differentiation during adolescence must recognize differential pressures…

Assumed determinants of ego identity were investigated in this study using sophomore, junior, and senior high school males and females. Subjects were administered the Marcia Ego Identity Status Scale and measures of sex-role identification, personality development, psychological functioning, self concept, and parental socialization practices. Data…

It has been predicted that, if an androgynous identity represents a higher level of psychosocial functioning, there should be a significant relationship between androgynous sex role identity and high self-esteem. To test this hypothesis, 139 male and female high school seniors completed the Sentence Completion Test of Ego Development, the Bem Sex…

The relationship between psychosocial development and ego identity was explored among a group of 29 married women, 21-59 years old. After being interviewed, subjects were assigned to one of four categories of identity status, based on their statements regarding decision-making and commitment. There were significant differences between identity…

Evaluates the effects of expanding sex-role alternatives on the passage of American middle-class women through the Eriksonian model of identity achievement. Contrasts contemporary norms regarding appropriate feminine roles with the more constricted social expectations of Erikson's time. Discusses validity of Erikson's original model of female…

Female traits of caretaking, nurturance, sociability, and empathy are not simply internalizations of societal norms and values. Rather, they result from early forms of thought that shape sex-role concepts in predictable ways. Their development can be traced to the young child's belief that "anatomy is destiny." (Author/KH)