Assessment of Identity Development: Current Issues and Future Directions

Over the past 20 years, much empirical work has accumulated to support Erikson's contention that identity formation is a pivotal developmental task of adolescence. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the three techniques of identity assessment most commonly in use at the present; to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each approach; and to make recommendations for future work, drawing from the literature on career exploration. The field is now at a point where more sensitive measurement is needed in order to understand the processes underlying identity development. Discussion integrates the traditional Erikson-Marcia identity research with the work currently being undertaken in the career development field in order to arrive at a more process-oriented characterization of identity formation.