The Relationship of Identity Statuses with Marriage and Having Children in Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of the present study is to examine the identity development of adolescents between 16-19 years old and emerging adults of 20-24 years old according to having children or not. Materials and Methods: The population of the study adopting a relational screening model was comprised of 300 participants, 150 mothers and 150 single students aged 16-24 years. Tha data was gathered by Personal Information Form and the Dimensions of Identity Development Scale. A chi-square statistic was estimated in order to determine whether participants’ identity Results: Findings of the current study indicated that no significant difference was found in the participants’ identity status by age (x2=7,257; p>0.05), while their identity status showed a significant difference by their marital status and status of having children. It was found that married participants mostly had a foreclosure identity status (38.0%; n=57), whereas single participants had diffused (25.3%; n=38) and undifferentiated (25.3%; n=38) identity status. Conclusion: It was determined that marriage and having children negatively affect the lives of individuals in a period in which psycho-social development especially identity development continues.