Late adolescent identity development: narrative meaning making and memory telling.

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Developmental Psychology
• Social Psychology

Background:

• Autobiographical memories form the basis of life stories, emerging in adolescence.
• Self-defining memories are crucial for constructing a narrative identity.
• Understanding the social context of memory telling is key to narrative identity development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine meaning-making and narrative functions of self-defining memories in late adolescence.
• To investigate the role of audiences in the social component of narrative identity.
• To understand how autobiographical memory construction relates to identity development.

Main Methods:

• Survey of 185 late adolescents on self-defining memories.
• Analysis of memory functions (self-explanation vs. entertainment).
• Assessment of memory audiences (parents vs. peers) and age-related shifts.

Main Results:

• Self-explanation was a more frequent meaning-making function than entertainment.
• Adolescents increasingly told memories to peers at later ages, and parents at earlier ages.
• Findings highlight both individual and social aspects of identity construction through memory.

Conclusions:

• Self-defining memories serve vital functions in adolescent identity formation.
• The audience for autobiographical narratives evolves, influencing social identity development.
• Narrative identity is shaped by both personal meaning-making and social interaction.