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No description available.

The major purpose of this study was to test Erik Erikson's epigenetic concept that the achievement of a reasonable sense of ego identity during adolescence is a prerequisite to the establishment of intimate relationships in adulthood. The sample consisted of 400 couples. Their names were drawn from a population of 1600 names which had been compiled from twelve church directories. The adjusted sample was 378 couples of which 88 chose to participate by returning completed questionnaires. The participants were typically white, well educated, well employed, in first marriages and fairly consistent in religious attendance. The project questionnaire was completed by both marital partners. It consisted of two scales and demographic questions. The Ego Identity Scale as developed by Rasmussen (1961) was used to measure the degree of identity obtained by all participants. The Personal Assessment of Intimacy in Relationships as developed by Olson and Schaefer (1981) was used to measure the degree of perceived intimacy on five dimensions within dyadic relationships. The hypotheses tested were designed to examine Erikson's epigenetic theory. Briefly, it was hypothesized that (1) spouses would have similar levels of ego identity development; (2) the identity of one spouse would be related to the intimacy of the other; (3) an individual's ego identity would be related to his/her achieved intimacy; and (4) demographic variables would not be found to influence ego identity. Husband and wife models were also compared. The ego identity scores of spouses were found to be related; no relationship was found between the ego identity of one spouse and the perceived intimacy of the mate; a significant relationship was found to exist between an individual's degree of ego identity development and his/her perceived level of intimacy across five intimacy dimensions; and demographic variables were not found to influence ego identity development. Interesting similarities and differences were found between husband and wife models. Generally, results reinforced Erikson's epigenetic concept. Further research was suggested to differentiate between male and female models and to assess the effectiveness of various therapeutic interventions by levels of couple identity development. / Ph. D.

The creation of identity, a stable sense of one's self, is a major developmental process in adolescence (Erikson, 1950). Identity develops through the process of socialization and identification with other people, such as role models. Adolescents have a primary inclination to use media in socialization, and Arnett ( 1995),reasons that the familial sources of socialization start to diminish during adolescence. Although peers are a major contributor of identity formation, media personalities are also used in the development of identity (Arnett, 1995). The purpose of the present study was to examine adolescents' identity-socialization process through use of 'media-based personalities. A sample of three-hundred-and-one students between the ages of 11 and 21 were surveyed. The participants were administered a questionnaire packet including written instructions and questions pertaining to the individual’s demographics, and identification with media-based role models. The packet also included the following inventories: the Multidimensional Self-Esteem Inventory (O'Brien and Epstein, 1987), the Emotional Autonomy Scale (Steinberg and Silverberg, 1986), and the Extended Version: Objective Measure of Ego Identity Status (Adams and Grotevant, 1979). The results of the present study suggested that media role models do have a significant impact on identity development in adolescence. Younger adolescents did not differ from older adolescents in overall level of media role model identification, but the variation in level of identification was much smaller for younger than for older adolescents, indicating that older adolescents are more individuated in their attitudes toward role models. Significant correlation's were also found between how often one wears clothing and jewelry associated with media role models and personality variables, such as emotional autonomy and level of identity attainment. Level of Total identification with media role models stayed high and steady throughout all adolescent age ranges. This finding suggests that media role models are highly identified with by adolescents. Overall, this study purports that media role model identification is a healthy process in identity achievement.

The Divine Coming of the Light is a memoir-in-essays that covers an experience, from 2007 to 2010, when I lived in Kosuge Village (population 900), nestled in the mountains of central Japan. I was the only foreigner there. My memoir uses these three years as a frame to investigate how landscape affects identity. The book profiles who I was before Japan (an evangelical and then wilderness guide), why I became obsessed with mountains, and the fall-out from mountain obsession to a humanistic outlook. The path my narrator takes is one of a mountain hike. I was born in tabletop-flat West Texas to conservative, Christian parents in the second most Republican county by votes in America. At 19, I made my first backpacking trip to the San Juan Mountains of western Colorado and was awed by their outer-planetary-like massiveness. However, two friends and I became lost in the wilderness for three days without cell phones. During this time, an obsession possessed me as we found our way back through the peaks to safety, a realization that I could die out there, yes, but amid previously unknown splendor. I developed an addiction to mountains that weakened my religious faith. Like the Romantic poets before me, God transferred from the sky to the immense landscape. I jettisoned my beliefs and became an outdoor wilderness instructor. On every peak I traveled up, I hoped to recreate that first conversion experience when I was lost in the woods. After college, while teaching English in Kosuge Village, I learned about the mountain-worshipping religion Shugendo: a mixture of Buddhism, Shintoism, and Shamanism. I climbed dozens of peaks, spending several days backpacking. However, while in Japan, I was nearly fatally injured on a solo, month-long hike. I saw the accident as a warning and turned my attention to studying writing and literature. When I came to Japan, I went up mountains, but as I left, I came down. The book profiles my experiences with mountains and my double disillusionment, leveling off with a humanistic outlook, leaving the narrator less a wanderer but more willing to empathize with other people.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2006. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--UCLA, 2005. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 293-314).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2005. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

M.A. (Industrial Sociology) / Identity construction amongst the youth is a vital process as it shapes who they are and what they want to be. Rapid social change contributes a great deal to the ways people create and shape their identities. This study focuses on youth identity construction in South Africa, specifically among young people at The Zone, a shopping mall in Rosebank, Johannesburg. In South Africa much research has been done on youths mainly focusing on delinquency. There is thus a knowledge gap with regard to youth identity and the positive aspects of life. This study, therefore, aims to shed light on the positive aspects of identity construction among the youth. Previous studies on youth identity construction have shown that youth identities are constructed in a world where popular culture dominates people’s existence. The construction of youth identity at The Zone is examined by focusing on music, fashion and technology as the main elements of popular culture. The theoretical framework of this study is derived mainly from scholarly work on identity formation, popular culture and youth culture at The Zone. For this study, both quantitative and qualitative research methods were used in which the following data gathering processes were applied: focus groups, semi-structured face-toface interviews, and questionnaires. The findings of the study show that identity construction amongst the youth is done through their interaction with one another as well as the images, styles and entertainment that form part of popular culture. Democratic South Africa has opened doors of choices for young people. Within certain constraints, they are able to do what they like, become who they like and explore their identities. The findings show that even though they come from different backgrounds, their aspirations to be hip and sophisticated, as dictated by popular culture, are similar.

Examines Chuck Palahniuk's novel Invisible monsters using the theories of Jean Baudrillard as a lens through which to better understand Palahniuk's commentary on the effects mass media have on human subjectivity in the terminal state.