Three missing dimensions in contemporary studies of identity: The unconscious, negative attributes, and society

Abstract

Erik Erikson developed a distaste for his concept of identity because it was so frequently misused. He held that identity development is not at an "achievement" or an unalterable accomplishment. He was concerned that certain dimensions of identity had been systematically excluded. To Erikson, three essential dimensions-the unconscious, negatives, and society-were studiously ignored. In operationalizing identity such that its facets are measurable, researchers had underrepresented the construct. In order to return these three dimensions to the identity construct, I first explore Erikson's meaning of the construct. I then examine how he saw the unconscious, social forces, and negating dimensions as attributes that must be included in any portrayal of psychosocial identity. Sources for this paper are Erikson's major publications on identity and his unpublished Harvard papers. © 2012 American Psychological Association.