Exploring the development of self-identity: a case study of selected suburban Malaysian adolescents

Abstract

Adolescence is the period of time that involves a diversity of challenges and transitions from childhood to adulthood. As Miller (2006) highlighted, the process of creating one’s individual identity is an ongoing cycle that are built upon previous stages as well as applying new things learned to new contexts. The development of one’s identity does not only involve the present experience of an individual, but also what he/she has experienced in the past. This study aims to explore the development of self-identity among suburban Malaysian adolescents from low socioeconomic family. There were two separate situations in the data collecting procedure used; a semi-structured interview which included colored pictures and vignettes that were formulated according to the research objectives as well as a two-week period of journal writing. The participants of this research are six Malay suburban adolescents aged between 13 and 17 years old. Each of them was selected using a purposive criterion sampling to fit in the research objective. The research questions that were used to guide the research process are: 1) What are the challenges that adolescent from a low socioeconomic family face when developing their self-identity? 2) What are the coping strategies in overcoming the challenges? 3) How have the challenges changed their perspective in life? There are ten themes acquired from the findings which are divided into three different sections namely challenges in developing self-identity, coping strategies in overcoming the challenges and lastly, aspirations. Themes outlined from RQ 1 are family problem, peer pressure and learning difficulties. Four themes emerged from RQ 2, which are not his/her actual self, staying focused, support and reflective thoughts. Themes for RQ 3 are changes he/she wish to make, his/her hopes to have a better future and future plans. The family’s SES has affected the adolescents indirectly; however, this is not the determinant to the success or failure of the adolescents. The research findings show that a good identity and academic outcome can be achieved by having good parental involvement, well perceived expectations, appropriate group of friends to socialize with as well as a healthy surrounding. Keywords: low SES, Malaysian adolescents, self-identity.