Sex identity refers to the social criteria by which men and women are defined within society. Although physical sex is biologically determined, sex identity, or gender, is defined culturally. There is thus variation in how women and men worldwide identify themselves with respect to each other. The way in which a society defines sex identity
Identity exists along a spectrum that ranges from the personal to the social. The personal end of this spectrum is constituted by the distinctive combination of attributes that an individual deems relevant to his or her self-concept (e.g., being shy or tall). The social end of this spectrum, in contrast, is constituted by the extent
Dissociative identity disorder (DID), formerly known as multiple-personality disorder, is one of the more controversial diagnoses in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (fourth edition; DSM-IV), with there being considerable disagreement over the validity and etiology of the disorder. Amnesia between identities is central to a diagnosis of DID. While explicit memory tests
A person’s identity develops as a consequence of the interplay between biological, psychological, sociological, and historical influences. At its core, it emerges out of the individual’s efforts to maintain a sense of personal uniqueness and continuity in the face of changing developmental tasks and life circumstances—and at the same time feel a sense of solidarity
Identity politics refers to the struggle for political recognition by marginalized social groups based on particular affiliations of individual identity, such as gender, sexuality, “race,” ethnicity, and nationality. Identity-based movements, as they grew in the west, challenged the limitations of political representation and citizenship offered within the liberal democratic state and institutions. Even as identity
Social identity theory (Tajfel & Turner 1979) was originally developed to explain prejudice and discrimination, and the circumstances under which societies would move from relatively cooperative and harmonious arrangements to overt conflict. The theory has since expanded enormously, and has become the basis for a general social identity approach to social psychological and communicative phenomena.
Communication plays a substantial role in influencing understandings and self-presentations with regard to age. While the immutable passing of time (and rising chronological age) is at the heart of life-span development issues, our age group identifications and the age groups into which we are categorized are not deterministically organized by chronological age. Rather, age identities
Exercise identity is a construct that captures the extent to which one sees exercise as a part of one’s self-concept, or who one is. This self-perception has been related to exercise behavior and may be of interest to researchers and practitioners who are invested in understanding and promoting exercise adherence. Adhering to recommended levels of
Identity is a rather loose concept which has various degrees of currency in a number of different disciplines. For example, Bosma et al. (1994) have argued that there is little consensus in the field of psychology about the phenomena to which the term identity might refer. They go on to suggest that, as a result
A variety of theories have developed in the study of domestic violence; these theories can be categorized into three general perspectives: (1) individualist, (2) interactional, and (3) sociocultural (Miller et al. 1999). Individualist theories focus on characteristics of the perpetrator or victim of domestic violence, but they do not address how the offender and injured