Premium
Urban America as a Context for the Development of Moral Identity in Adolescence
Author(s) -
Hart Daniel,
Atkins Robert,
Ford Debra
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
journal of social issues
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.618
H-Index - 122
eISSN - 1540-4560
pISSN - 0022-4537
DOI - 10.1111/j.1540-4560.1998.tb01233.x
Subject(s) - prosocial behavior , poverty , identity (music) , action (physics) , context (archaeology) , social psychology , moral development , moral disengagement , sociology , social cognitive theory of morality , social identity theory , psychology , social capital , positive youth development , developmental psychology , economic growth , social group , social science , geography , economics , physics , archaeology , quantum mechanics , acoustics
Moral identity, defined as a self‐consistent commitment to lines of action benefiting others, is described in the contexts of adolescence and poor, urban neighborhoods. A model of moral identity development is proposed. According to the model, stable characteristics of the individual and the individual's family, in conjunction with social attitudes, self‐conceptions, and opportunities for the exploration of prosocial action, influence the development of moral identity. Analyses from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth provide support for the model, and demonstrate that urban poverty is associated with few opportunities for development of moral identity. We argue that the provision of these opportunities should be given a high priority both to foster good individual development and as a means for increasing social capital in neighborhoods.