THE IMPORTANCE OF IDENTITY
&
IDENTITY ENGAGEMENT THEORY
Aurelio’s Journey, Revisited and Interpreted through the Lens of “The Identity Engagement Process”
Why is Identity so Important? Simply put, it is among the most critical and under- appreciated elements in a young person’s social and emotional development. For every young person, discovering who they are is a critical step in becoming a well- functioning adult. The social psychologist, Lee Ross, takes it one step further: identity is the “mother of all construals.”
The Identity Engagement Theory. According to Julio Garcia and Geoffrey Cohen, two prominent social psychologists, young people often go through a number of developmental stages stages before they can truly engage and take control of their own learning. This is especially true of whose are often at the receiving end of negative stereotypes and prejudice.
While this multifaceted process applies to any young person at any age, it is especially germane, even destructive, for Latino, African American and LGBTQ students. For these students in particular, the “cues” they pick up around them are often rooted in their cultural heritage. The ways they understand themselves (who they are, what they value and where they belong) can be captured in one word, “identity.” Identity is not static. It is dynamic and evolving, especially in the years between 12 and 20 (in other words, adolescence). For teenagers, identity formation is the major developmental task.
Stage One: Vigilance. The first stage is “vigilance,” a self-protecting inner mechanism that any sentient teenager will employ when encountering a new, social or academic situation. That is, the young person is “on guard,” suspicious even for being typecast negatively. If the student’s vigilance is “disconfirmed,” then the young person can go about the normal course of learning.
Stage Two: Threat Appraisal. If, however, vigilance is “confirmed” and prejudice is validated (at least in her mind), a second stage kicks in: “threat appraisal.”
• If the threat is not validated, then the young person can go about her business of
learning, albeit a bit more slowly than her non-minority counterparts.
• If, on the other hand, the threat appears to be real (i.e., “validated”), the young person has three major decisions to make: 1.) retreating into her shell and avoiding all such encounters; 2.) speaking out on her own and confronting the perpetrator; and 3.) getting the assistance or intervention of a trusted adult to put her back on the right path.
For many students, a threat appraisal is a rather rare and isolated occurrence. As such, it can keep a student out of harm’s way, and like being vigilant, it can be both healthy and adaptive. Yet, for students who are first generation to our country, especially those who suffer daily under the threat of deportation, one can only imagine how complex and potentially exhausting and debilitating this series of judgments and decisions can be.
Why is Identity so Important? Simply put, it is among the most critical and under- appreciated elements in a young person’s social and emotional development. For every young person, discovering who they are is a critical step in becoming a well- functioning adult. The social psychologist, Lee Ross, takes it one step further: identity is the “mother of all construals.”
The Identity Engagement Theory. According to Julio Garcia and Geoffrey Cohen, two prominent social psychologists, young people often go through a number of developmental stages stages before they can truly engage and take control of their own learning. This is especially true of whose are often at the receiving end of negative stereotypes and prejudice.
While this multifaceted process applies to any young person at any age, it is especially germane, even destructive, for Latino, African American and LGBTQ students. For these students in particular, the “cues” they pick up around them are often rooted in their cultural heritage. The ways they understand themselves (who they are, what they value and where they belong) can be captured in one word, “identity.” Identity is not static. It is dynamic and evolving, especially in the years between 12 and 20 (in other words, adolescence). For teenagers, identity formation is the major developmental task.
Stage One: Vigilance. The first stage is “vigilance,” a self-protecting inner mechanism that any sentient teenager will employ when encountering a new, social or academic situation. That is, the young person is “on guard,” suspicious even for being typecast negatively. If the student’s vigilance is “disconfirmed,” then the young person can go about the normal course of learning.
Stage Two: Threat Appraisal. If, however, vigilance is “confirmed” and prejudice is validated (at least in her mind), a second stage kicks in: “threat appraisal.”
• If the threat is not validated, then the young person can go about her business of
learning, albeit a bit more slowly than her non-minority counterparts.
• If, on the other hand, the threat appears to be real (i.e., “validated”), the young person has three major decisions to make: 1.) retreating into her shell and avoiding all such encounters; 2.) speaking out on her own and confronting the perpetrator; and 3.) getting the assistance or intervention of a trusted adult to put her back on the right path.
For many students, a threat appraisal is a rather rare and isolated occurrence. As such, it can keep a student out of harm’s way, and like being vigilant, it can be both healthy and adaptive. Yet, for students who are first generation to our country, especially those who suffer daily under the threat of deportation, one can only imagine how complex and potentially exhausting and debilitating this series of judgments and decisions can be.