Identities Paper Description from Syllabus and Guiding Questions

Identities Paper: In this paper, you will create a fictional adolescent character (between 14 and 16). This character may be as similar to or different from you as you like. Assign this character a sex, a gender, a sexual orientation, a nationality, a race, and an ethnicity. Pick one of these identities and then using the theories and research we have considered in class write a 2-page analysis that discusses how this character developed this identity. Please consider the roles of biology and socialization (refer to the relevant reading). Include at least a half page discussion of how your character's identity may have been shaped by agents in each level of Bronfenbrenner's ecological model. The Identities paper is worth 15% of your final grade and is due on November 4th at start of class.

These are guiding questions to help you write. However, please feel free to add details or emphasize whatever interests you most. If you think a question does not really apply to your topic, skip it, but don't skip a whole set of questions. Write in full sentences. Pay attention to spelling, grammar, organization, and flow.

First one or two paragraphs- describe the 14-16 year-old teenager that you are making up. What age is your teen? Where does this person live? With whom? What is this teen's sex, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, race, and any additional ethnicities? What interests does this person have? How does your teen dress? End this section with a sentence stating which identity your paper will focus on. I highly recommend focusing on gender or a cultural identity (race, nationality, or ethnicity).

Next paragraph- In terms of the identity that you chose, which of James Marcia's categories best describes your teen (achieved, moratorium, foreclosed, diffused)? Explain your answer in terms of exploration and commitment. How has your teen explored (or not explored) the identity you chose? If your teen is not in the "achieved" status, what might he/she need to do to get there? If he/she is in the "achieved" status, how did this happen?

Next one to two paragraphs- What has influenced your character's identity? What role (if any) did biology play? What role did environment play? What kind of socialization has taken place? Has one of these forces been more influential than the other? In terms of Bronfenbrenner's ecological model, what are some examples of influences at each level that have affected your character? Reminder: the levels of interest here are microsystem, exosystem, and macrosystem. Microsystem includes family, school, peers, work; exosystem includes extended family, neighborhood, mass media, parents'work; macrosystem includes large societal forces like the region/country's culture and its underlying values, attitudes, and assumptions. Describe how at least one influence from each of these levels has affected your character's identity development.

Last paragraph- How does your character feel about this identity? How do his/her peers and parents feel about it? Do you think this identity or how your character relates to that identity might change in adulthood? Why or why not?