Vygotsky and identity formation: A sociocultural approach

Abstract This article considers how Vygotsky's approach to investigating human mental functioning can inform identity research. An integrative sociocultural approach to identity formation is presented here, an approach that utilizes different elements of both Vygotsky's and Erikson's work. Specifically, identity researchers are directed to study identity in local activity settings where participants are actively engaged in forming their identities; to examine the cultural and historical resources for identity formation as empowering and constraining tools for identity formation; to take mediated action as a unit of analysis; and to examine the variation in cultural resources for identity formation in terms of commitments to Erikson's domains of identity: fidelity, ideology, and work.