Personal control over development, identity formation, and future orientation as components of life orientation: A developmental approach.

Abstract

Two components of life orientation emerged in a study of 145 men and 142 women at age 26: (a) Positive Orientation (PO), which included self-percepts of personal control over development, positive evaluation of the future, and identity achievement; and (b) Motivated Questioning (MQ), which consisted of identity exploration, motivated future orientation, and dissatisfaction with present achievements. Methods used were an identity status interview, a Personal Control Inventory, and a semistructured interview. In comparison with MQ, PO was more strongly associated with variables involved in adaptive psychological functioning: personal well-being, broad range of goals, social acceptance, and socially constructive ends (A. S. Waterman, 1992). School success studied at ages 8 and 14 and socioeconomic status contributed to both PO and MQ more strongly in women than in men. Life orientation in men was more dependent on current variables involved in adaptive psychological functioning. An individual's conceptions of his or her personal goals have been studied in psychological literature from different perspectives. Three are reviewed in the present article: self-percepts of personal control over development, identity formation, and orientation to the future. The main hypothesis is that these constructs are empirically interrelated in a way that reflects an internal consistency and a long-term developmental process. This hypothesis is based on a theoretical assumption that there is a common underlying construct-adaptive psychological functioning-that modulates them toward internal consistency and that is modified by life experiences. Several researchers (Archer, 1989;Brandtstadter & Baltes-Gotz, 1990;Waterman, 1992) have concluded on the basis of literature reviews and empirical findings that adaptive capacities are associated with a clear sense of identity and self-percepts of autonomous control over development. The idea was originally presented by Erikson (1950Erikson ( ,1968, whose concept of identity is part of his eight-stage theory, which is "an outgrowth of his concern with understanding mentally healthy functioning," as noted by Waterman (1992, p. 50). Personal Control Over DevelopmentUnder the construct of personal control over development, Brandtstadter (1989, p. 96) described "an individual's sense of

Identity Formation, Personal Control Over Development, and Well-Being

“…For the present analyses, separate scales for each of the identity statuses were created at each measurement point (at ages 27, 36, and 42) on the basis of the number of domains in which the individual was in a particular status, following the procedure used by Pulkkinen and Rönkä (1994). In a five-domain interview, six-point scales (0 to 5) were produced.…”

“…The Personal Control Inventory was divided into five factors by Pulkkinen and Rönkä (1994) using data gathered at age 27. The same factors have later been used by Pulkkinen, Kokkonen, and Mäkiaho (1998) to 2.56.…”

“…In this chapter, the processes and implications of one's orientations and self-definitions were analyzed along two dimensions: One's sense of identity, and the self-percepts of autonomous control over development. Several researchers (e.g., Archer, 1989;Brandtstädter & Baltes-Götz, 1990;Pulkkinen & Rönkä, 1994) have concluded, on the basis of literature reviews and empirical findings, that adaptive capacities are associated with a clear sense of identity and personal control over development. Although any given cultural and historical context confines the possible alternatives, an individual's developmental pathway is largely a result of intentional choices, based on his or her earlier and current selfdefinitions and identity (Brandtstädter, 2002).…”

Implications of Timing of Entering Adulthood for Identity Achievement

“…Separate scales for each of the identity statuses were created at each measurement point (at ages 27, 36, and 42) on the basis of the number of domains in which the individual was in a particular status, following the procedure by Pulkkinen and Rönkä (1994). Given a five-domain interview, 6-point scales (0 to 5) were produced.…”

The role of exploration and critical decision making and problem solving in making life choices

“…Cognitive factors, such as development of formal operations, the ability for assimilation and accommodation, and perspective-taking, are also involved in the individual's ability to explore available choices. Pulkkinen & Ronka (1994) have criticized the tendency of researches to focus attention on identifying one overall status, while moving away from Erikson's original conceptualization of identity as a sense of inner wholeness.…”