Identity Coping in the First Years of University: Identity Diffusion, Adjustment and Identity Distress

Future-oriented or present-focused? The role of social support and identity styles on ‘futuring’ in Italian late adolescents and emerging adults

“…Given the challenging social and economic contexts in which Italian youth live, it is not surprising that we are noting changes in developmental pathways. For example, when compared to their Northern European peers, Italian late adolescents and emerging adults demonstrate a postponement of identity choices (Crocetti, Rabaglietti, and Sica 2012;Sica, Aleni Sestito, and Ragozini 2014). Furthermore, the image of the future as a controllable and governable time is shrinking, and as a result, 'the present looks like the only temporal dimension available for defining choices, an authentic existential horizon that, in a certain sense, includes and replaces future and past' (Leccardi 2006, 41).…”

“…Research indicates that the role of parental support decreases with age; as adolescents become older, they experience less parental support, and its importance for their emotional adjustment also declines (Meeus et al 2005). We must also consider the traditional literature on the development of autonomy in adolescence/young adulthood and the recent literature on identity diffusion in the Italian context (Sica, Aleni Sestito, and Ragozini 2014). Developmentally speaking, Italian students in their final year of high 14 L.S.…”

The “Futuring” Dilemma in Narrative Identity: A Longitudinal Study of Future Vocational Plans Among Italian Freshmen

“…Within a university system in which all the students in this study had chosen a college major, these results suggest that only a fraction of these had committed to a career. This discrepancy between academic and career commitments speaks to the increasing lack of confidence that Italian young adults have in an educational system that presently leads to very limited work opportunities (Aleni Sestito et al, 2015;Sica et al, 2014).…”

“…For example, when compared to their Northern European peers, Italian late adolescents and young adults demonstrate a postponement of identity choices (Crocetti, Rabaglietti, & Sica, 2012;Sica, Aleni Sestito, & Ragozini, 2014). Furthermore, the image of the future as a controllable and governable time is shrinking, and as a result, "the present looks like the only temporal dimension available for defining choices, an authentic existential horizon that, in a certain sense, includes and replaces future and past" (Leccardi, 2006, p. 41).…”

“…For these reasons, in some contexts particularly exposed to the economic crisis of recent years, this process has become more and more problematic and difficult, a source of discomfort and stress (Berman & Montgomery, 2014). Research findings documented for young people show that, even though they have decided to prolong their studies and invest in specialized post-graduate university studies and training courses, the presence of identity postponement (Crocetti, Rabaglietti, & Sica, 2012) in some cases is linked to identity distress and anxiety (Sica, Aleni Sestito, & Ragozini, 2014) and to a general sense of discomfort in future plans and present focusing (Adams, 2009;Leccardi, 2006). However, our question is how young people, in a context of poor career and work opportunities, can explore and commit their vocational identity and how they can build a clear sense of who they are and where they are going in their lives.…”