Abstract
Developmental literature highlights that cognitive, moral, and affective development proceeds from concrete operations to more abstract ones. However, it is not known whether this fundamental developmental trajectory also characterizes the development of social identification (i.e., the feelings of belonging, affiliation, and correctness to a group, coupled with the sense of commonality with fellow ingroup members). This longitudinal study aimed (a) to unfold the association between identifications with two proximal groups (i.e., classmates and friends) and identification with humanity, and (b) to examine how these identifications with close and abstract groups affect adolescents’ social well-being (i.e., an indicator of youth adaptation in their societies and communities). Participants were 304 adolescents (61.84% female, Mage = 17.49) involved in a three-wave longitudinal study. Identification with proximal social groups (especially classmates) was positively associated with identification with humanity, and identifications with both proximal and abstract groups were related to social well-being over time. Moreover, identification with humanity and identification with friends mediated the positive longitudinal effects of identification with classmates on social well-being. The implications of these findings for adolescents’ social inclusivity and adjustment are discussed.
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Notes
Sensitivity analyses indicated that results were replicated also when controlling for adolescents’ gender and for maternal and paternal educational background.
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Authors’ Contributions
F.A. conceived the current study, wrote the manuscript, and participated in the interpretation of the results, and in the drafting of the article; E.C. conceived the current study, performed the statistical analyses, wrote the manuscript, participated in the interpretation of the results, and in the drafting of the article; M.R. conceived the current study, participated in the interpretation of the results, and in the drafting of the article. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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This research was undertaken with the support of the Alma Idea Junior research grant by the Alma Mater Studiorum University of Bologna to E.C.; of a Seedcorn grant of the European Association of Social Psychology (EASP) to E.C.; of a research grant from the Department of Psychology of the Alma Mater Studiorum University of Bologna to F.A.
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Albarello, F., Crocetti, E. & Rubini, M. Developing Identification with Humanity and Social Well-Being Through Social Identification with Peer Groups in Adolescence. J Youth Adolescence 50, 1157–1172 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-020-01214-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-020-01214-0