Four Stages of Identity Development

As a school of inclusion, Chamberlain International School invites all students to discover and express their true selves. Chamberlain International School encourages this process through clinical treatment programming, including creative expression groups, as well as through a diverse program of extracurricular activities.

In developing identity, most adolescents pass through stages or statuses of exploration and commitment. Many teenagers spend time in what psychologists term a state of identity diffusion, during which the adolescent is not yet thinking about a particular aspect of identity. An adolescent passing through this status may not only be undecided about a career path, but also may be uninterested in considering possibilities.

For some individuals, a crisis prompts the need for exploration. This often sends a person into a state of identity moratorium, in which the individual is actively exploring or trying on aspects of identity. Commitment to any particular identification is low during this stage, and the adolescent requires strong guidance to stay safe as he or she experiments.

Some developing individuals, however, make a commitment before a crisis occurs. This may be a result of parental dictation of what an individual's identity should be, despite the fact that the adolescent in question has not yet explored possibilities This is known as identity foreclosure. 

Identity achievement, by contrast, takes place when the adolescent him- or herself has experimented, considered, and ultimately chosen an identity that seems to be a good fit.