Poster #214 - The Directional Links Between Synthesis and Confusion among Hispanic Immigrant Adolescents

• In Event: 3-003 - Poster Session 09
  In Poster Session: PS 09 Section - Social, Emotional, Personality

Integrative Statement

As posited by Erikson (1950), identity development involves a dynamic interplay between synthesis and confusion. Indeed, early identity development in adolescence often involves balancing one’s newfound self-knowledge and synthesis with a sense of uncertainty or confusion about who one is and where one is headed (Schwartz, Luyckx, & Crocetti, 2014). For Erikson (1950), healthy identity development is represented as a preponderance of synthesis over confusion. Within this conceptualization, synthesis and confusion are not opposites and can coexist within the same individual (Schwartz et al., 2017; Syed et al., 2013). For Hispanic youth. however, achieving identity synthesis, and minimizing confusion may be more difficult because of the need to navigate multiple cultural reference points (Meca et al., 2017). As such, an understanding of general identity development among Hispanic youth is critical towards understanding normative and atypical development. Although previous studies have explored the longitudinal trajectories of synthesis and confusion among Hispanic adolescents (Schwartz et al., 2009, 2017), no study to date has explored the directional relationship between synthesis and confusion.

To address this limitation, we sought to establish directionality between synthesis and confusion in a sample of recently immigrated Hispanic adolescents. Consistent with Erikson’s (1950) conceptualization, we hypothesized a bidirectional relationship. The sample consisted of 302 recently immigrated (<5 years in the US) Hispanic adolescents (53% boys; mean age 14.51) drawn from a longitudinal study of acculturation. Analyses were conducted using Random Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel Modeling (RI-CLPM). To establish temporal invariance, we imposed equality constraints on corresponding cross-lagged relationships and evaluated the tenability of these stationarity constraints by utilizing the ΔCFI (>.010) and ΔRMSEA (>.010) criteria. The model provided good fit to the data: χ2(27)=51.96, p=.003; CFI=.953; RMSEA=.055; SRMR=.053. Moreover, invariance tests suggested temporal invariance, ΔCFI=.005; ΔRMSEA=.003. At the within-person level, as shown in Table 1, results indicated that when individuals’ scores on synthesis were higher than expected (based on their own person-mean-level across time points), they reported to report lower than expected levels of identity confusion (β=-.106, p=.013). At the between-person level, however, results indicated a significant correlation between the random intercepts for identity confusion and synthesis (r=-.501, p<.001), indicating that individuals with high identity confusion also tended to report higher levels of identity synthesis.

In contrast to our initial hypothesis, at the within-person level, the current results indicated a negative unidirectional relationship between synthesis and confusion. Although previous research has also identified adolescents with a stable and certain identity across adolescence (Kroger et al., 2010; Luyckx et al., 2008; Meeus et al., 2012), this finding is inconsistent with the identity literature that has posited that a certain amount of confusion and uncertainty is necessary for the development of a sense of self (Crocetti, Rubini, & Meeus, 2008). These findings may be unique to recent immigrants. Indeed, scholars have argued that identity development can anchor young people during times of acute cultural change (Meca et al., 2017). Future research is necessary to further explore these processes as they emerge in day-to-day interactions.

Authors

• Alan Meca, Old Dominion University
  Presenting Author

• Julie Rodil, Old Dominion University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Rachel Davis, Old Dominion University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Schwartz J. Seth, Old Dominion University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Jennifer Unger, University of Southern California
  Non-Presenting Author

• Daniel Soto, Old Dominion University
  Non-Presenting Author