Identity Play: Middle School Youths' Provisional Self-Making in Horizon-Expanding STEM Spaces

Abstract

This study introduces identity play as an analytic construct for science education to explore improvisational dimensions of middle school students' STEM identity development in multiple out-of-school learning experiences focused on environmental problem-solving. Tracking identity affiliations across time scales (weeks and years), we observed playful, unpredictable, nonlinear, and dynamic narratives of self. Their identities did not progress stably or incrementally, prompting our theorizing about identity play. Identity play refers to the exploratory process of trying out various narratives and performances of provisional selves in novel, low-stakes, horizon-expanding activities. Using grounded theory methodology with interview and video data, we asked: What are generative spaces for identity play? How do youth engage in identity play within those spaces? With illustrative cases of three youths' participation, we identified three types of spaces that encouraged identity play: not-like-me, like-me, and let-me-see spaces. The cases demonstrated how youth shifted their perceptions and performances of self in contexts that acknowledged and celebrated the exploration of new identities, where curiosity and enjoyment organized aims and previously unthinkable identities became plausible. STEM identity play complements the construct of identity work; it illuminates under-explored facets of identity development, such as identity discovery, reinvention, and expansion. This reframing broadens what counts as learning in identity development and reflects the expansive, plural nature of science identities. This research offers promising strategies for designing experiences that nurture these processes. Notably, identity play thrives in horizon-expanding contexts that prioritize exploration over correctness and recognition, encourage buffered risk-taking, and offer multiple interest hooks and pathways.