Identity Development of Teenage Girls: A Cross-Ethnic Perspective

A comparative research was conducted to study the identity development of young girls belonging to two different cultures i.e., Britain and Pakistan. It was intended to observe their identity development in relationship specific domains (i.e., Gender Roles, Friendship, and Dating), the domains of ideology (Religious Ideology and Politics), and the domain of Occupation. The purpose was also to observe the ethnic/cultural differences in the process of identity development. 40 British (white) and 40 Pakistani (immigrant) teenager girls were the sample. Ego Identity Interview (Grotevant & Cooper, 1981) was used to determine their level of identity development. The results suggested that more girls were identity achieved in the relationship domains as compared to the other domains. Also there were significant differences in the levels of identity development of both the groups specifically in the domains of Religious Ideology, Dating, and Gender Roles. Pakistani girls were either diffused or had foreclosed identities in these areas. Overall, more British girls were identity achieved as compared to the Pakistani girls. Results were interpreted in terms of the theory of Self-in-Relation and cultural variability dimension of Individualism-Collectivism.