Conflict-Resolution Strategies and Adolescent Identity Development

I explored the influence of parent–adolescent conflict on identity development by examining the identity status of 278 migrant and mainstream adolescents in relation to methods of dealing with disagreements with parents. Results were generally consistent with Erikson's theory, with the 8% minority of teenagers who habitually disputed so violently with their parents as to attempt to inflict verbal or physical injury scoring higher on the diffusion maladaptive identity dimension, whereas the 26% who routinely avoided all forms of heated discussion or argument scored nonsignificantly higher on identity foreclosure.