The Relationship between Identity and Behavior: A Longitudinal Study and Online Intervention
The Relationship between Identity and Behavior: A Longitudinal Study and Online Intervention
Funding
This project is supported by a grant of the Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digitization, CNCS/CCCDI – UEFISCDI, project number PN-III-P4-ID-PCE-2020-0179, within PNCDI III, awarded to Oana Negru-Subtirica.
Project duration
January 2021 – December 2023
Project background
In a 21st century of multiple identities and excessive information, a clear and coherent image of who you are is a core asset. A recent meta-analysis on youth career decisions found, for the first time, a significant effect of values and identity commitments on life decision-making (Whiston, Li, Mitts, & Wright, 2017), while another pointed out that strong identity commitments are longitudinally linked to positive outcomes across adolescence (Meeus, 2016). As educational goals and plans are decisive for life success in adulthood, the formation of an adaptive and coherent educational identity is crucial (Verhoeven, Poorthuis, & Volman, 2019). Recent OECD studies have pointed out that adolescent educational goals, at a global level (Mann et al., 2020) and for STEM subjects (Kuhl, Liang, Guerriero, & Van Damme, 2019), are not anchored in personally-relevant and reflective exploration. Educational goals are rather decided by the school context, with the student playing a passive role in projecting his/her personal values and goals into these choices. These troubling findings make school-based interventions that strengthen adaptive educational commitments a necessity, to prepare young generations for a future labor market marked by perpetual technological change.
Project objectives
This research project aims to:
- analyze the longitudinal dynamic co-development of a multi-level educational identity in early adolescence;
- investigate the mediating and moderating role of core personal and school factors in the development of a multi-level educational identity;
- construct an online intervention focused on middle-schoolers’ multi-level educational identity;
- identify and longitudinally operationalize relevant behaviors for a multi-level educational identity;
- test, implement, and evaluate the online intervention in the context of the longitudinal panel study.
Project team
Associate prof. Oana Negru-Subtirica, PhD (project director) – oananegru@psychology.ro
Professor Adrian Opre, PhD
Professor Oana Benga, PhD
Lecturer Lavinia E. Damian, PhD
Eleonora Ioana Pop, PhD
Anca Mustea, PhD
PhD student Casandra Timar-Anton
PhD student Cătălina Petruș-Pop
PhD student Bianca. V. Marinică
Year 2021
The 1st stage of the project was focused on developing the online intervention and the protocol for the longitudinal study. The project team first analysed existing online and offline interventions in the domain, with a focus on classroom-delivered interventions. Starting from this analysis, together with the software developer, we worked on specifying the basic technical characteristics of the intervention, which underwent iterative internal testing before reaching a final coherent form.
During the next step, we worked on the content, which also underwent several review stages before being implemented online. The online sessions were then tested qualitatively and quantitatively with 6th and 7th grade students, using a User Experience testing protocol. The feedback received from students was later integrated in the 2nd version of the online intervention. As far as the protocol for the longitudinal study is concerned, we selected the variables of interest for future analyses. The set of questionnaires were implemented online, using the SELFID Lab platform.
During this stage of the project, the research team published 1 article in an ISI Q1 journal (Timar-Anton, Negru-Subtirica, & Opre, 2021) and disseminated some of the research results by delivering 4 conference presentations.
Year 2022
The 2nd stage of the project was focused on implementing the longitudinal study and the online intervention, as well as disseminating the research results. The research team took an iterative and participatory approach in testing and then gradually implementing the intervention. The student beneficiaries of the intervention were directly involved, through sequential testing, in the development of the sessions of the intervention, both through qualitative and quantitative testing.
The beneficiaries’ gradual feedback regarding their user experience was dynamically integrated into the optimization of the 7 sessions of the intervention. The sessions include gamification elements (e.g., badges, quests, collaborating games, story-telling, journey). The online intervention was divided into 7 sessions, each one consisting of several activities which varied in terms of content, theme, visual aspect, and functionality. Overall, more than 200 activities were developed and then implemented. The classroom intervention was conducted using tablets connected to the internet, allowing students to simultaneously engage in the collaborative activities.
During this stage of the project, the research team published 3 research articles indexed in ISI (2 Q1 articles and 1 Q2 article) and attended 4 international conferences.
Year 2023
The 3rd stage of the project was the evaluation the intervention based on the large-scale
implementation of the intervention with 6th and7 th grade students in their classrooms, and dissemination of project result. Classroom implementation involved careful coordination and organization in terms of class scheduling and technical equipment preparation. Implementing and evaluating the intervention involved more than 100 classroom meetings with the students.
The eXplor Știința App is a unique digital tool, connected to the needs of today’s society, supporting middle school students by creating relevant learning contexts. This was facilitated by the “exploratory missions” presented at the end of each session which stimulated students to use the content learned during the activities in their everyday lives.
The eXplor Știința application is the first educational software in Romania which aims to provide a framework in which students can discover and explore new science-related interests, understand the connection between present behaviours and their future, and enhance their curiosity. Moreover, the application integrated the latest results from the scientific literature with activities targeted at developing specific skills.
During this year, the research team published 2 ISI Q1 articles and developed a user
manual for the teachers, school counsellors, and other professionals interested in the topic. In
addition to this, the research team attended 2 international conferences.
Publications
2023
Negru-Subtirica, O. (under review, invited article). Educational identity in adolescence: Longitudinal evidence and the role of educational systems. Child Development Perspectives. IF: 6.4, Q1
Timar-Anton, C., Negru-Subtirica, O., & Damian, L. E. (2023). The role of parental socio-economic status and perceived career-related behaviors in developmental trajectories ofeducational identity in adolescence: A four-wave study. European Journal of Personality. https://doi.org/10.1177/08902070221150480 IF: 7, Q1
Negru-Subtirica, O. (Ed.) (2023). Aplicația online eXplor Știința: Cum să aducem Știința mai aproape elevi. Editura ASCR, Cluj-Napoca. ISBN 978-606-977-087-0
2022
Negru-Subtirica, O., Damian, L. E., Pop, E. I., & Crocetti, E. (2022). The complex story of educational identity in adolescence: Longitudinal relations with academic achievement and perfectionism. Journal of Personality. https://doi.org/10.1111/jopy.12720. IF: 5.117, Q1
Timar-Anton, C., Negru-Subtirica, O. & Opre, A. (2022) How first-year students manage their action crises and motivation to build their learner identity: a look into the critical moment of goal disengagement. Motivation and Emotion. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-022-09965-y IF: 4.135, Q1
2021
Damian, L. E., Negru-Subtirica, O., Vois, D., & Stoeber, J. (2021). On the longitudinal interplay between perfectionism and general affect in adolescents. Journal of Research in Personality, 93, 104102. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2021.104102. IF: 3.068, Q2
Timar-Anton, C., Negru-Subtirica, O., & Opre, A. (2021). The Development and Testing of a Mobile Self-Tracking App To Strengthen Identity Commitments Through Personal Goals. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 151, 102642. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhcs.2021.102642. IF: 3.632, Q1
Conference papers
2023 Dodan, D., & Negru-Subțirică, O. „TikTok – a playground for identity development? Investigating its benefits and pitfalls.”. Poster presented at 10 th European Conference on Social Media, Krakow, Polond (18-19 may).
2023 Marinica, B.V., & Negru-Subtirica, O. (2023). ”Students’ path to self-discovery: Vocational identity construction and personal values.” Oral presentation at The International Adolescence and Youth Research Congress, Cappadocia, Turkey (6-8 september).
2022 Negru-Subtirica, O., Damian L. E., Pop, E. I., & Crocetti, E. Self-sabotage at school: How perfectionism erodes the longitudinal relations of educational identity and academic achievement Invited oral presentation at the 19th Conference of the European Association for Research on Adolescence (EARA), Dublin, Ireland (24-27 August).
2022 Marinica, B.V., & Negru-Subtirica, O. Approaching graduation: Students’ vocational identity statuses and transitions. Invited oral presentation at the 19th Conference of the European Association for Research on Adolescence (EARA), Dublin, Ireland (24-27 August).
2022 Mustea A. & Negru-Subtirica, O. A transdisciplinary approach to creating an engaging learning experience through an educational app Poster presented at the 19th Conference of the European Association for Research on Adolescence (EARA), Dublin, Ireland (24-27 August).
2022 Negru-Subtirica, O. (chair) Student engagement in adolescence: Longitudinal, person-centered and metaanalytic perspectives Sympozium organised at the 19th Conference of the European Association for Research on Adolescence (EARA), Dublin, Ireland (24-27 August).
2021 Marinica, B.V., Negru-Subtirica, O. Online volunteering during a pandemic: Physical isolation and organization commitment. Paper presented at the National Conference of the Association of Psychologists from Romania, Virtual conference (11-14 November).
2021 Marinica, B.V., Negru-Subtirica, O. Self-efficacy and hope in times of COVID: what makes a difference for emerging adult volunteers? Paper presented at the 10th Conference of the Society for the Study of Emerging Adulthood (SSEA), Virtual conference (4-5 November).
2021 Marinica, B.V., Negru-Subtirica, O. Volunteering as a path towards meaning: relations between reasons for volunteering and meaning in life. Paper presented at 10th Conference of the Society for the Study of Emerging Adulthood (SSEA), Virtual conference (4-5 November).
2021 Petrus-Pop, C., Negru-Subtirica, O. Principles for promoting identity exploration within the curriculum: A critical analysis for the Romanian educational context. Paper presented at the Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Society Conference, Cluj-Napoca, Romania (15th July).
2021 Timar-Anton, C., Negru-Subtirica, O., & Opre, A. Associations between identity processes and goal disengagement and re-engagement. Poster presented at the 27th Annual Conference of the International Society for Research on Identity Conference (ISRI), Virtual conference (3-4 June).
2021 Timar-Anton, C., Negru-Subtirica, O., & Opre, A. The role of goal disengagement and reengagement in students’ study goals. Paper presented at the 10th Conference of the Society for the Study of Emerging Adulthood (SSEA), Virtual conference (4-5 November).
Awards
2021 Timar-Anton, C., Negru-Subtirica, O., & Opre, A. Best Poster Award at the 27th Anual Conference of the International Society for Research on Identity Conference (ISRI), Virtual conference (3-4 June) for the poster entitled: Associations between identity processes and goal disengagement and re-engagement.
