Table Of ContentJan D. Sinnott Editor
Identity
Flexibility
During
Adulthood
Perspectives in Adult Development
Identity Flexibility During Adulthood
Jan D. Sinnott
Editor
Identity Flexibility
During Adulthood
Perspectives in Adult Development
Editor
Jan D. Sinnott
Towson University
Baltimore, MD, USA
ISBN 978-3-319-55656-7 ISBN 978-3-319-55658-1 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-55658-1
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017950293
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Preface
After changes, after changes, we are more or less the same….
~Simon & Garfunkel, “The Boxer” (“missing verse”)
Be like water
run deep run clear
fill any space to its own dimensions
respond to the moon, to gravity…
take the coast by storm…
go underground…
eat boulders quietly…. ~Kendra Ford
We humans, especially we modern Western humans, struggle with the idea of iden-
tity. As children, we are asked what we will be when we get older, and we name
something concrete and then wait to miraculously become it for the rest of our lives.
As adolescents and young, emerging adults, we struggle to “find ourselves” and to
“create ourselves” before too much more of life passes.
During adulthood as “stuff happens,” our identities are more or less challenged.
This is frightening, because we thought we knew who we were, because we dislike
change, and because we don’t want to contemplate losing parts of the self. The cre-
ation of identity turns out to be an ill-structured logical problem without clear
boundaries or solutions. When we finally become accustomed to the ill-structured
nature of identity, the realization that life is finite puts an even larger existential
identity challenge in our paths.
With every lesson about who we are comes the feeling of dread: What if I am not
the person I thought I was before? To survive adulthood as a “self,” we need to keep
that self somewhat flexible without losing it entirely. This does not feel easy and
may sometimes feel impossible. How can we understand cognitively this thing
called an identity when it both is and is not at the same time?
v
vi Preface
In this book, I have tried to gather the wisdom of many writers who all accepted
the challenge of talking about creating a flexible adult self and identity during adult-
hood. These authors come at this challenging question from many different perspec-
tives using different tools. Some survey existing literature and theory and then
summarize prior work in a meaningful way. Some discuss their own research; some
reflect on personal experiences that have demanded a flexible identity. As I spoke
with potential authors, I was surprised by the great variety of their approaches to the
problem of maintaining/transforming an identity in the face of ongoing challenges
to that identity during adult life. I continue to be impressed with the real wisdom
shown in addressing these challenges and demands by individuals who each try to
create a flexible but ongoing adult identity and “eat boulders quietly.”
How This Book Is Organized
The First Two Chapters
The first two chapters in this volume offer a structure we can use to think about
identity flexibility during adulthood. This book begins with a summary of theory
about the nature of identity in which we can ground our explorations. Evangeline
Wheeler starts us off with her chapter “On the Stability of Identity Interacting with
the Impermanence of Time.” She addresses the making of identity, external identity
(the identity of ourselves with others), internal identity (the identity of aspects of
ourselves within ourselves), and identity as memory over time. In each of these
“identity spaces,” we see ideas and uncertainty with more research needed. The
challenge of social intersection with individual development over time makes the
formation and nature of identity especially challenging.
The second chapter addresses a particular interest of mine, namely, “The
Cognitive Underpinnings of Identity Flexibility in Adulthood.” As I developed the
adult cognitive-developmental theory of postformal logical thought and noticed the
many potential applications of this theory, I gradually realized that postformal logic
is involved in knowing the evolving self. To make matters even more interesting,
here is a place where cognition, emotion, social/interpersonal factors, and individu-
al’s beliefs about something greater than that mortal individual self all intersect,
transform, and are known. Constructing this concept of the transforming self is one
of the intriguing processes explored in this chapter.
Remaining Chapters
The remaining chapters in this book cover such a wide variety of issues and
themes, all centered on the flexibility of adult identity, that they are arranged in
alphabetical order on the basis of the first author’s last name. See the table of
Preface vii
contents and the information about each author, as well as the keywords for each
chapter. Here, I’ll give a brief description of each chapter to stimulate your appe-
tite for these many ideas.
Sherry Beaumont writes about “Identity Flexibility and Wisdom in Adulthood:
The Roles of a Growth-Oriented Identity Style and Contemplative Processes.”
Contemplative processes are ways of understanding and accepting the nature of
one’s inner and outer reality through direct experience in the given moment. This
style of identity processing is oriented toward the development of personal growth
and ultimately brings about compassion and wisdom.
Emerging adulthood is becoming an important focus of psychologists. In his
chapter, Luke Boardman makes “An Experiential Exploration of Identity During
Emerging Adulthood” with the subtitle “The Impact of Growth Experiences on
Emerging Adult Characteristics.” Gathering exploratory data led him to the conclu-
sion that emerging adulthood emphasizes identity flexibility and is a stage of testing
oneself in reference to the world, ending, hopefully, in the state of being a respon-
sible adult. Growth experiences may have a significant role to play in this process.
A subcategory of identity theories that has become a rich source of ideas in adult
identity development and flexibility involves Black identity, especially Black immi-
grant identity. “Bridging the Gap: Black Immigrant Identities and Dreams of Home”
is the title of the chapter contributed by Leonie J. Brooks. This chapter highlights
the multidimensional experience of Black immigrants in the United States as it
relates to the complex process of establishing and maintaining evolving national,
racial, and ethnic identity in a predominantly white context. Brooks uses her own
experience as well as quotes and experience from interviewees to illustrate the com-
plexity of this identity creation.
Cameron Camp writes about “Flexibility in Persons with Dementia.” The focus
of this chapter is on the capacity of persons diagnosed with dementia to exhibit flex-
ibility in their actions, thinking, attitudes, and creative capacities, including the
capacity to shape and reshape identity. In contrast to the way many patients are seen
as “those who are demented,” Camp offers a series of examples from his work
where dementia sufferers think of themselves, for example, as beer brewers in a
beer-making club, as activity planners, and as dog trainers. International explora-
tions have demonstrated that individuals with dementia don’t limit themselves to
identifying with their diagnoses but also see themselves as learners when they are
asked what they want to learn and offered a chance to learn that. Being a resident
leader for activities expands identity beyond “patient” to “leader.”
In later adulthood, if not before, we confront life’s existential questions, issues
surrounding spirituality, and our relations with the transcendent in terms of our own
definitions. From this challenge, we see the inherent contradictions in the self when
relating to the transcendent. The false self (a reference point focused on personal
achievement grounded in the ego) cannot grasp this series of contradictions, but the
true self (a reference point that is utterly within you and utterly beyond you at the
same time) can resolve the contradictions and paradoxes. These are just some of the
ideas presented by John Cavanaugh in his chapter entitled “Spirituality as a
Framework for Confronting Life’s Existential Questions in Later Life.”
viii Preface
While there has been scholarly interest in social identity, most studies focus on
Western countries and dominant ethnic groups in non-Western countries. Gareth
Davey offers a qualitative analysis of identity among the Badaga people of South
India, a non-dominant disadvantaged group. Limited research has been conducted
on the identity of groups such as this who may construct identity in different ways
grounded in different cultural and historical practices. His chapter is entitled “Rural-
Urban Migration, Quality of Life, and Identity.”
Many of us find a real challenge to our ongoing identities when we become
parents. Maria Fracasso writes about this important area of growth in her chapter
entitled “The Concurrent Paths of Parental Identity and Child Development”. She
discusses the experience so widely shared of being forever changed upon becoming
a parent, and remaining a parent is various ways for life!
Gender is one of the first identities we learn, and it is usually binary (e.g., man/
woman). In their research, Paz Galupo, Lexi Pulice-Farrow, and Johanna L. Ramirez
examine gender identity flexibility among 197 transgender individuals by exploring
the gender identity labels they choose and the descriptions they provide for their gen-
der identity and experience. This chapter is entitled “Like a Constantly Flowing River:
Gender Identity Flexibility Among Non-binary Transgender Individuals.” Galupo
et al. suggest that the way gender-nonconforming individuals describe their gender
identity may contribute to the way we conceptualize identity flexibility overall.
An examination of “Identity Stories to Jettison” is contributed by Louis Green.
As she says, what we believe is true can shape, delineate, and limit consciousness.
Using examples from personal stories, the ideas of the Zanders published by the
Harvard Business School, and poetry, she suggests we consider dropping three
assumptions: that I am alone, that my identity is fixed, and that there will never be
enough. Without these, we can thrive. Rather than writing in a scholarly style, Green
offers the gift of personal experiences using an everyday language and tone. This
variety in tone is one of the positive features of this volume and the variety of
authors who contributed to it.
Carol Hoare contributed the chapter entitled “Work and Identity Flexibility.”
This chapter considers the turbulence of today’s work environment and how its
uncertainty requires flexibility in employees’ identities. Three ways workers can
reshape their work-based identities are examined, including those of knowledge
upgrading, adapting to changing role functions, and transitioning to positions that
better express their identity needs. Identity flexibility becomes a survival
mechanism.
The changes in identity experienced when one moves from student to profes-
sional are explored by Shaina Kumar in her chapter entitled “Moving from Student
to Professional: Thoughts on Roadblocks and Keys to Success.” Shaina uses her
own relatively recent experiences to describe how identity is shaped in the crucible
of experience from graduate school to beyond. While many students have faced the
challenge of moving beyond the student role, not many have analyzed the process
and gone on to offer “keys to success” to those coming after. Shaina has now done
this service which should be of help to professionals in formation now going through
the process.
Preface ix
The flexible tailoring of identity in middle adulthood may be enhanced by engag-
ing in freely chosen “play” activities. For example, individuals might achieve self-
differentiation and social integration through leisure play, freely chosen. Kevin
Rathunde and Russell Isabella discuss this intriguing issue in their chapter entitled
“Play, Flow, and Tailoring Identity in Middle Adulthood.” The authors use rich
interview materials to illustrate their theoretical ideas. In the absence of events that
force change upon the self, identity development often depends upon the willingness
of a person to intentionally engage in challenges significant enough to require reor-
dering priorities and goals.
In his chapter, Grant J. Rich considers “Optimizing Challenges: Eminent Elders
Meet Adversity with Identity Flexibility.” Rich performed deep analysis on two case
studies of eminent elders who achieved great success and international reputation in
their chosen fields. The case studies show how eminent creators, by making good
use of flow, utilized identity flexibility in pursuit of their goals despite tremendous
life challenges. This type of study seems worth pursuing to develop new interven-
tions and therapies for those facing life adversity.
“Identity Flexibility and Buddhism” is the title of the chapter by Jeff Rosenberg.
Our recent Western explosion of interest in Buddhism stems from many motivations
and does not always focus on exploring Buddhist definitions of identity. Here, this
self-definition includes the concept of “no self.” In his masterful chapter, Rosenberg
uses his own personal explorations, the teachings of key Buddhist teachers, and the
experiences of his clients in therapy to learn more about what flexible identity
means in that tradition. Is there such a thing as “identity”? Is “flexible identity” a
contradiction in terms?
Another clinician, Vedat Şar, a specialist in dissociative identity disorders (or, by a
former name, multiple personality disorders), contributed the chapter entitled “Identity
Revised: A Clinician’s Perspective on What an Identity-Based Model of Mind Looks
Like.” Identity is challenged by traumatic stress, and such challenges may lead to a
disruption in psychological functions and, possibly, the emergence of clinical symp-
toms. Timely resolution seems to be associated with a capacity to be open to imple-
ment newly learned principles while keeping a basic level of continuity.
The next chapter focuses on the identity development of caregivers and includes
discussion of the importance of flexibility being a part of caregiver identity. Those
of us who have been caregivers for, perhaps, a parent or spouse know that experi-
ence can make us question who we are and what skills we actually possess. Kim
Shifren, in her chapter on “Caregiving Identity and Flexibility,” discusses identity
development, followed by work on, specifically, caregiver identity development.
Assessment tools for the study of caregiver identity development do exist, and the
chapter concludes with ideas for future research.
First person stories of identity flexibility told from the individual’s own history
and perspective are important to our understanding of identity flexibility. Valerie
Smith shares with us her personal evolution into the complex identity she now holds
as an artist. Her chapter, “Dual Identities and the Artist,” gives us a glimpse into how
complicated and confusing this lifelong process can be. It may take a lifetime for
someone to truly identify as an artist, but with that belief, identity and art can con-
x Preface
tinue to grow. How do we combine our artist/nonartist selves? Again, the strongly
personal and emotional language helps the reader to share Smith’s experiences cre-
ating this complex identity. She also offers a glimpse at how the role of being a
parent influences that complex identity creation.
Our sense of who we are can be challenged when we become seriously ill and
life takes a different turn. Betsy Stellhorn talks about her personal experience of
becoming a cancer patient in her first person chapter entitled “The Sick Self.” Going
from seeing herself as strong and healthy to suddenly seeing herself as a cancer
patient with its attendant expectations quickly led her thru an understanding of the
nature of impermanence. How to integrate the former healthy self with the current
sick self? She says she still thinks wistfully of the “healthy, active grey-haired
grandmother in her 80s” she thought she would be, but she no longer takes it for
granted.
The last chapter, by Alan Waterman, is entitled “‘Just When I Knew All of Life’s
Answers, They Changed the Questions’: A Eudaimonist Perspective on Identity
Flexibility During the Adult Years.” Previously, research on identity development
has focused primarily on the stages of adolescence and emerging adulthood. The
focus of this chapter is on identity development between the ages of 35 and 50,
when challenges to contentment can come from job or family or many other
domains. Eudaemonic happiness is contentment or well-being, expressing virtue.
The predictors of this successful, virtuous use of identity flexibility are also
discussed.
Although these chapter authors discuss a wide variety of aspects of identity as it
flexibly changes during adulthood in the face of numerous experiences, they are
really addressing one key question. How adaptive and fluid is identity and how can
we know ourselves as both continuing and changing? Exploring these ideas will
raise the possibility of future research on adult identity.
Baltimore, MD, USA Jan D. Sinnott
