Now that you have read and reviewed the material on psychosocial development during adolescence, take your learning a step further by testing your critical thinking skills on this pattern-recognition exercise. The following brief case studies illustrate the identity statuses proposed by John Marcia and others. For each case, suggest the most appropriate identity status—identity achievement, foreclosure, role confusion, or moratorium—and describe your reasoning.

1. Rudy. Rudy has changed his college major so many times that it will take him six years to graduate. Since his parents have pointedly objected to paying the expenses for tuition and room and board, Rudy has cheerfully taken on a variety of jobs, ranging from bartender to shoe salesman. He likes work that allows him time to think and be alone; his few friends are very much the same way. Rudy’s grades are generally high, though his record is marred by several “incompletes.” He has had one very satisfying intimate relationship and is searching rather anxiously for another. Rudy’s identity status would probably be described as:

2. Melissa. Melissa’s parents are both physicians. In college she majored in French, spending a semester in France studying art and culture. Upon graduation she surprised her parents by announcing that she had applied to medical school. A close relationship with a hospice nurse and a summer job as a hospital volunteer had helped her arrive at the decision. Melissa’s identity status would probably be described as:

3. Lynn. Lynn’s mother is a professor of women’s studies who is deeply involved in feminist issues. Lynn very much admires her mother, a strong woman who, as a single parent, struggled to provide for her daughter while establishing her own career. Lynn believes that she, too, will be a strong and independent woman. She avoids people (especially men) who either don’t see her in that light or try to bring out her feminine nature. She certainly steers clear of her paternal grandmother, who (although pleasant) is a very disorganized and “artsy” person. Lynn’s college grades are very high, and her course selections reflect an unwavering interest in psychology, politics, and women’s studies. Lynn’s identity status would probably be described as:

4. Daniel. Daniel is a first-year student at a college near his old high school. He comes home nearly every weekend but does not enjoy himself once he’s there. He avoids talking to his parents or old high school friends, preferring to “surf the Web” on the computer in his room. Periodically he engages in impulsive shopping; after these sprees he comes home and talks excitedly about the latest electronic gadget he’s acquired. He gets angry if his parents ask what he considers to be foolish questions, and angrier still if they patronize him. Daniel is enrolled in courses he has been told are easy, and he does not have strong feelings about his studies or his grades. Daniel’s identity status would probably be described as: