Attachment and identity development amongst early and middle adolescents

Abstract

There is a considerable literature linking aspects of personality, attachment,and identity development. Five hundred and thirty one boarding school learners participated in a study of the relationship between identity, assessed with the Ochse’ Erikson scale (Ochse, 1983; Ochse & Plug, 1986), EPIES (Rosenthal et al., 1981), PIES (Markstrom et al., 1997), and Tan’s Eriksonian Ego Identity (Tan et al., 1977); domicile (rural or urban), and attachment assessed with The Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment Revised (IPPA-R; Gullone, & Robinson, 2005). No relationship was found between domicile, and the development of attachment and identity. Results of the current study revealed no significant relationship between attachment, identity development and home background of individuals.

Keyword: Attachment; Identity formation; Internal working models; Exploration; Commitment.