I Narrate, Therefore, I Am: How the Construction of a Storied Self Bridges

Abstract

Researches have approached the construct of identity and issues surrounding it from very disparate theoretical perspectives. some conceptualize identity as an internal entity molded over time by reflection, and others view it as a transitory construction negotiated in dialogue. I proposed a narrative bridge between the two major camps--cognitive-developmental and social-discursive--and asked the question: How does the narrative work young adults do in representing identity-relevent experiences relate to their identity commitments and concerns? After an Identity Centrality Questionaire (ICQ) was developed and piloted along with a narrative prompt, 93 participants completed surveys about their identity centrality, status and concerns. Then, 86 participants wrote narratives about social experiences characterized by difference and again completed the ICQ. Authors' scores on standard measures of identity achievement were not related in coherent ways to the evidence of identity work seen in their stories. Identity claims made in the narratives were examined in a micropositioning analysis that illuminated identity work being done in the story writing.