Deciding whether or not to become a parent is a developmental milestone in the adult life course yet the specific term of reproductive identity is not commonplace. Significant demographic shifts in fertility and the social ideals of self-realization have impacted how reproduction is performed and families are structured, particularly for women and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex and Asexual (LGBTQIA) communities. Like gender and sexuality, reproduction is a healthy aspect of human expression to be openly explored, destigmatized, and self-authored. This article will review relevant identity development theories and propose a preliminary definition for the emerging concept of reproductive identity. Implications for research, education, and counseling will be considered. Public Significance StatementThis article presents a new concept known as reproductive identity that mirrors preexisting models of human identity such as race, gender, and sexuality. Educators, practitioners, researchers, and policymakers may use this novel term to explore how individuals realize parenthood or nonparenthood, develop their reproductive identity, and integrate it into their overall sense of self.

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Increasing rates of mental illness among college students over the past 10 years suggest a collective deficit in meaning and purpose unattended to by many university campuses. Psychopathology among young adult college students is associated with developmental tasks such as spiritual individuation, suggesting that interventions aimed at spiritual wellbeing may support the stated need for comprehensive mental health services. The aim of this pilot service assessment study is to investigate the feasibility, acceptability, and helpfulness of spiritually integrated programs at a Spirituality Mind Body (SMB) Wellness Center at a graduate-level academic institution. Wellness Center demographic and attendance data of N = 305 adult graduate students (M = 27.7 years, SD = 6.05) were used to assess acceptability and feasibility. To evaluate helpfulness, measures assessing symptoms of depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress (PTS), spirituality, mindfulness, and psychological inflexibility were completed before and after eight-week programs on a subset of participants (n = 141). SMB users completed a total of 64% of sessions and reported significant pre/post gains in spirituality and mindfulness and decreases in psychological inflexibility, symptoms of depression and PTS. The preliminary findings of this open-trial are encouraging but inherently limited by the design; foremost, the results offer support for future research, which might draw on a larger sample and a study design involving a comparison group.

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