Explain how four different factors influence identity ...

[khang]

Explain how four different factors influence identity development.
 
  What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

Babies can begin to see all the basic colors of the rainbow by the age of about
 
  a. the seventh month of pregnancy.
  b. birth.
  c. three months.
  d. six months.

[ngr69]

Answer to Question 1

Four factors influence identity development: cognitive development, parenting, schools, and culture. Cognitive development influences identity by entrance to the formal-operational period. During this period, young people are able to finally entertain hypothetical possibilities. This allows them to try on and imagine different identities that they might eventually adopt, a skill they may not have had previously. Parenting styles also influence identity development. Extremely close relationships with parents coupled with harsh parenting that promotes fear of rejection may promote identity foreclosure, while neglectful parenting tends to be associated with identity diffusion. Adolescents in moratorium or identity achieved status tend to come from homes with more authoritative parenting styles that promote both warmth and discipline.

Schools can influence the development of identity as well--especially the decision to attend college. College can increase commitment to career goals (identity achieved with respect to career), but may delay or leave in limbo commitments to religious or political ideologies (diffusion or moratorium). Finally, sociocultural factors also influence identity development. In Western cultures, it is quite customary to believe that a person must try on and actively adopt an identity, while in less developed parts of the world, identity foreclosure seems much more adaptive.

Answer to Question 2

C