Constructs of Identity Essay - 1779 Words

Identity often refers to a sort of desperate quest or a deliberately confused search through both a mental and moral experience. However, Erikson approaches this idea as an experience that will almost be a surprise that sneaks up on one, rather than something that can be found. The process of identity formation is located in the core of an individual, and also in the core of ones communal culture. This process is ever changing and developing, but reaches a crisis during the stage of adolescence. At the earliest stage of the identity crisis there is an important need for trust in oneself and others. Adolescents, at this stage, look passionately for ideas to place faith in, and additionally, ideas, which seem worthwhile to prove†¦show more content†¦252). Adolescents can be remarkably intolerant to peers or concepts which one may view as â€Å"different†. Erikson explains that such an intolerance to something abnormal or different may be a necessary defense against a sense of self-identity loss. However, this may be unavoidable at a time of life when ones body is changing its proportions drastically, and puberty is driving the body and imagination towards new impulses. In addition to an increased interest in intimacy with the other sex, one is confronted with too many conflicting possibilities and choices. Adolescents not only help one another through such discomfort by forming cliques and stereotyping themselves, their ideals, and their enemies, but also adamantly test each other’s capacity for sustaining loyalties in the midst of inevitable conflict and values. Erikson explains that adolescence is a vital regenerator in the process of social evolution, and youth can offer loyalties and energies both to the convers ation of that which continues to feel true and to the revolutionary correction of that which has lost its regenerative significance (Erikson, p. 255). This further explains Erikson’s take on the ever-evolving process of forming ones identity. It is throughout childhood that tentative crystallizations of identity take place, which make the individual feel and believe some sort of identity has formed, onlyShow MoreRelatedValue Systems Construct A Social Worker s Identity Essay1360 Words   |  6 PagesValue systems construct a social worker’s identity. It guides how social justice issues are approached. Values and ideologies construct social problems and social responses (York University, 2016, p. 1). Social workers assess values shaping the intervention process influencing the type of social change made. As a critical social worker, I will operate on the core value of non-judgment which is align with the social work code of ethics, history and mission statement. Social work theories explainsRead MoreHow Do Travelers Construct Their Own Identity As They Travel? Essay2140 Words   |  9 PagesHow do travelers construct their own identity as they travel? ‘â€Å"Who are you?† said the Caterpillar.’ (Carroll 1998: 40). Identity is explored extensively throughout Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and Amos Tutuola’s The Palm-Wine Drinkard (1952). Both protagonists embark on a journey that questions their inner self; through the distortion of characters, time and plot. Transformations allow each protagonist to distort their own identity and gain self-awareness as they travelRead MoreIdentify How We Construct Identity? What Elements Make Up Identity? How Do We Exhibit Identity?1721 Words   |  7 PagesIdentify how we construct identity? What elements make up identity? 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In what ways do images construct identities? Discuss using specific examples. Stuart Hall defines identity as an ‘already accomplished fact, which the new cultural practices then represent’. We should think instead of ‘identity as a ‘production’ which is never complete, always in process, and always constituted within, not outside, representation’ (Hall 1994 p.392). An individual’sRead MoreGender As A Socio Cultural Construct Of Female And Male Identity That Shapes How Individuals Live And Interpret The2518 Words   |  11 Pagesâ€Å"Gender is a socio-cultural construct of female and male identity that shapes how individuals live and interpret the world around them. Gender is not natural: it is learned in society through direct and indirect means† (Knapp, 1). The purpose of this paper is to provide an examination and a comparison of the gender roles and cultural differences among men and women in Mexico and China particularly in the areas of traditional customs, education, family structure/marriage and la bor markets. SinceRead MoreMen’s Clothing, and How Men Used Their Fashion and Appearance to Construct Their Masculine Identity, as Well as Their Social Class2137 Words   |  9 Pagestypes of jackets, trousers, cravats, ties, and hats that provided plenty of material for asserting or maintaining social status (Delpierre, 1990). This essay focuses on men’s clothing, and how men used their fashion and appearance to construct their masculine identity, as well as their social class. To begin with, it talks about the Sumptuary Laws applied to the Medieval Men Clothing, and how the bourgeois class emulates aristocratic elements later. Second, it compares the Macaroni image with theRead MoreSocial Constructionism, Identity and the Concept of Deviance Essay1409 Words   |  6 PagesSocial Constructionism, Identity and the Concept of Deviance Social constructionist use the term social construction to imply that our understanding of the world in which we live is constructed from the social interactions we have on a daily basis. In reference to identity, social constructionist theory (SCT) proposes that we as social beings actively construct our identities using social tools as the means in which to construct our identities, the foremost one being language. This particularRead MoreOperational Definitions Of Construct Validity1011 Words   |  5 PagesConstruct Validity Construct validity, pertains to the validity of the instrumentation used to capture the constructs/concepts a researcher is interested in measuring (Shadish, Cook, Campbell, 2002). In research, the concepts explored must be defined explicitly to communicate with others how the research was conducted. For this end, conceptual definitions are needed to explain the meaning of a concept. However, operational definitions provide specificity on how the concept will be captured and