A model of personal identity that is contextual, dynamic, and useful for research and interventions

What is it about?

Identity has been used in many different ways that differ in seemingly irreconcilable way: identity as stable vs. changeable, personal vs. social, individual vs. cultural-contextual, developing gradually vs. fluctuating. But identities are not either-or any of these dichotomies; they reflect both sides of all of them. In this paper, we use assumptions about the nature of complex systems that explain phenomena like the weather and the movement of schools of fish to describe a model of identity that bridges across these dichotomies. We also describe how this model can be used to study identity and to guide interventions to facilitate desirable identity development.

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Why is it important?

The identity model that we describe explains how a person's action emerges from their role identity. Thus, it can explain why a person or a team of people behave in a particular way in a certain situation, and in another way in other situations. It can also explain why a person experiences tension and indecision, or resist interventions to change their behavior. Furthermore, it can explain how contexts influence identity change, with an emphasis on promoting people's agency in their own identity formation, and thus guide educational and professional development design.

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